


When You Set Your Status To It's Complicated, People Think You Are Going Through An Existential Crisis

by yatagarasu (leelhiette)



Category: Gintama
Genre: Attempt at Humor, Drama, Gintoki-Centric, Introspection, M/M, Minor Original Character(s), Post-Canon, Relationship Study, Shenanigans
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-20
Updated: 2020-08-21
Packaged: 2021-03-05 03:55:28
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 38,077
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25408018
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/leelhiette/pseuds/yatagarasu
Summary: A month ago, Gintoki and Hijikata broke up.(Or no one knows why and people around them are trying to get them back together.)
Relationships: Hijikata Toshirou/Sakata Gintoki
Comments: 105
Kudos: 442





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Another work from me! I hope you enjoy it!

It started out like this.

"Oh, you're eating lunch by yourself again, Gin-san?" The old lady at the snack bar asked in surprise as she served him his signature Uji-Gintoki-bowl.

"Why are you saying things that's already obvious?" Gintoki complained as he pulled his chopsticks apart. "It's not like this would be the first time, you know? Gin-san has always been a loyal customer of yours. Don't tell me that you're starting to doubt him now of all times. I've only been gone for two years, not forever." He scowled at her suspiciously since he'd been coming to this place by himself so many times.

Her eyes seemed to study him. Which was unnerving.

"I see." She merely said before her eyes strayed to the empty seat beside him.

It didn't end there.

Like a disease that suddenly popped out of nowhere, it seemed to have affected people he knew.

"Ah, Gin-san." Otae greeted him with a wide smile, all the while holding up a certain gorilla by the collar of his kimono with her fist raised. "Would you mind returning a missing animal to the zoo for me? We have an important client later in the afternoon and I can't have anyone causing trouble for me and the girls. I'd do it myself but we're still in the middle of preparations." She punctuated this sentence by bringing down her fist mercilessly.

Gintoki stared at the barely conscious form of Kondo Isao whose nose was bleeding profusely.

"Why does it have to be me again?" He asked just for good measure.

Otae opened her mouth to presumably threaten him into submission before she paused. Then she let go of the gorilla before she marched towards him and patted his shoulder gently. He didn't move because he learned long ago how one wrong twitch could take a turn for violence.

"I understand." She told him with eyes suspiciously full of sympathy. "I'll just call someone from the Shinsengumi myself."

What.

Seriously, what the hell?!

Hasegawa poured him a drink. "It's been a while since we went out drinking like this. But, then again, that's to be expected now, right? No worries, Gin-san. You can let it all out here. Complain all you want, cry all you want, or I'll even let you punch me to vent out. Just _once_ , okay? I'm not really a masochist but if it will help you in any way, I'm willing to become that punching bag. If you do more after that, it'll be 100 yen per punch."

"How about I just punch you and get it over with?" Gintoki questioned darkly, eye twitching.

Even the cashier at the Oedo Mart seemed to be on it too.

Gintoki was just buying his usual carton of strawberry milk and latest issue of Jump, damn it.

"Ah, danna!" The young teen behind the counter brightened upon seeing him as he rung the silver-haired man's purchases. "We have a promo this week! If you buy ten bottles of kewpie, you'll get one bottle for free along with our store's new yakisoba bread. If you buy twenty bottles, I'll even add that Chocolate Cream Cornet that you want." He stared at him expectantly.

"Not interested." He replied as he paid for his goods.

His answer seemed to surprise the other as he processed his payment and gave him his change.

Then he stared outside through the glass doors.

"I-I see." The teen that Gintoki had never learned the name of no matter how many times he'd been here said. "You know what? I'll give you that Chocolate Cream Cornet for free, after all." He told him as he grabbed said bread from one of the nearby shelves and placed it on the plastic bag along with his strawberry milk.

**oOo**

A commercial one Sunday morning was the beginning.

"This is my journey—" The woman with a long braid announced, slowly pulling out her sword from behind her. "This is what _ani_ entrusted to me. I won't stop until all aliens are wiped out." She then proceeded to walk out from what was obviously their base. Her coat fluttered behind her as her footsteps echoed in a dramatic fashion while a blurred outline of a monster roared in the distance. The same hideous monsters from its prequel.

"After all, aliens aren't a problem." The background music played as the scene froze. " _Alien vs. Yakuza 2: Burial_ , showing in the theaters this XX of XXXX!"

Sadaharu had perked up behind him, obviously having recalled one of their jobs together from what seemed like long ago.

"What?" He scowled at the screen in distaste. "This thing got a sequel? What the hell is this? They even had the new character copying the same line from the first movie!" Gintoki criticized with a sigh as he laid down and went back to his Jump.

"Gin-san, you have no room to complain seeing as you cried by the end of that movie." Shinpachi calmly countered as he set about dusting the place.

"Yeah," Kagura cut in before he could voice out his protest about that. " _Someone_ and Gin-chan have the same taste in movies. We only got to watch that movie because _someone_ lent a copy to us along with that Pedoro thing." She yawned as she stretched out on the sofa across from him.

His hearing must be going bad because he could've sworn that she was growling out certain words for a second there.

Gintoki turned a page.

"Oi, don't diss Pedoro-kun. You don't know what he's been through." He clicked his tongue in annoyance.

"See what I mean?" Kagura waved her hand towards him disinterestedly.

"Hai, hai, we get it already," Shinpachi let out a sigh of his own before turning to him with a bright gleam in his eyes that made the silver-haired man wary. "Wait, Gin-san, the movie is showing next week, right? Why don't you watch it with _someone_? You know, _someone_ who's totally a fan of the first movie so they won't have a reason to turn you down. This is your chance to spend time with _someone_." He pointed out, voice rising in pitch at odd intervals as he stopped what he was doing.

"I don't remember knowing anyone like that." Gintoki answered nonchalantly.

"In that case, we have—" The glasses perked up.

"Not interested." He shut him down instantly.

"You didn't even hear what I had to say!" Shinpachi yelled at him with a glower. "I was going to tell you that we have tickets! If you don't want to watch it with someone, then you can just come with us. I want to see if the second movie is better than the first one." He muttered under his breath.

The teen might think that he was convincing but Gin-san was an expert in sniffing out bullshit from miles away.

"Oh, but don't we have a job on the premiere day?" He pointed out and turned another page.

"It got moved next, _next_ week, yes?" The Yato chimed in decisively, sitting up and crossing her arms over her chest. "That old man could use another week of vacation. No one wants dango anyway. They do studies on what food is on demand, right? And next week is for ramen." Her brows furrowed in consternation, staring at him like he was the son who inherited all the stupidity in the family.

It was proof that they'd been watching too much dramas because he recognized that look from Kimiko-san after she discovered that her son had sold their house for hand-holding privileges with his father's mistress–

_Oi, you're just projecting your cravings!_

"Then Gin-san would go on the job while you kids watch the movie." Gintoki yawned, smacking his lips together.

"What if we do the job _after_ watching the movie?" Shinpachi insisted.

"The job comes first—"

Gintoki choked as a pair of feet slammed onto his chest without warning, making him release his beloved Jump which smacked him on the face before it slid to the floor.

Kagura glared down at him. "You have two choices, shitty boss: I drag you there by your perm and _we watch the movie_ or I'll drag you there by your b*lls and _we watch the movie_."

_Patsuan, why're are you just watching this abuse?!_

Gintoki wheezed. "G-Gin-san chooses the option where you leave him _intact_ and he will watch the movie." He slapped her on the knee urgently, feeling what little air he had in his lungs slowly shrivel and die.

Kagura harrumphed.

Then mercifully got off.

**oOo**

Just to stop the kids from watching his every move, he'd made it his mission for the week to accept every missing cat job from those lonely grannies in Edo. _That_ was the goal until he realized that at least three old women lost their furry companions in a day. At this time, he'd sat down by the park bench, eyeing the flyers of missing felines in his hand blankly. In those three days, he had at least _ten_ cats to look for.

Maybe he should've stopped accepting requests by the first day.

Out of all those ten, he'd only managed to return four.

Gin-san wasn't a cat person anyway. That was why he had Sadaharu in the first place, right?

"Okay, so next, we have Yoyo-kun." He murmured under his breath as he eyed his next target, a chocolate-colored cat with a dark heart-shaped patch of fur on his forehead. "Likes salmon and climbing trees. Will scratch you if without food. Please feed him while– oi, this isn't a missing poster! This old lady is practically entrusting that cat to whoever finds it!" He complained, eyeing the dubious line of _loves cuddling, you won't regret it_ as if that was any helpful!

"While I see the appeal of cats, I wouldn't have expected you to have love for them considering how you mistreat Sadaharu-dono." An unwanted voice chimed in as Gintoki felt an unwanted presence settle by the empty space beside him.

"Like hell. Also, I don't want to hear that from someone who can't even remember what his pet looks like." He grumbled before pausing, then handed out the poster of Yoyo-kun.

"H-He's so _cute—_ " Katsura cleared his throat loudly as he snatched the paper. "Well, if you're looking for a cat, I suppose I can lend you my sources." The man's eyes shined rather disturbingly, having never left the picture of the chocolate-colored animal.

Gintoki considered his words.

In the distance by the playground, he saw the familiar profile of Elizabeth. And he was– looming over some kids. He watched blankly as the brats scurried away screaming while the duck-like creature watched them go. Was the creature allowed to do that? Those kids were legitimately crying out in fear, right? Then, without warning, his head snapped towards them and Gintoki instantly averted his gaze back to the flyer.

"Actually," He started out as he stared at the other flyers in his hands. "Those grannies said that you can play with these kitties before you return them. As long as they get back safe and sound, you can go cuddle with those fluff balls to your heart's content." He handed them out to the long-haired samurai.

"But this is obviously a job request for the Yorozuya–"

"Not necessarily." Gintoki cut in forcefully, absently watching as Elizabeth occupied one of the swings in the playground. "You know Gin-san can never turn down a cry for help—"

"What about that time you pretended to be asleep when I was yelling about bubblegum in my hair?" Katsura was quick to bring up.

"I did?" He blinked.

"Yes," The man deadpanned. "The noise woke you up but you feigned going back to sleep." His eyes narrowed, obviously holding on to this grudge for some reason.

When was that again? Oh, right. But that one was Katsura's fault. After hearing the rather high-pitched shrieking, Gintoki had taken one look at Katsura's panicked tear-stained face, whole head covered in bubblegum gunk and decided that, _yes_ , he was still dreaming. That was also the first time he'd seen him with short hair after—

Wait a moment—

"Oi, we were _kids_ back then!" Gintoki protested, straightening from his slouch. "And that one was totally your fault! Who told you to chew through ten packets of bubblegum in the first place?!"

"I wanted to see the biggest bubble I could make," Katsura casually revealed before he turned to Gintoki with teary eyes. "That's not the point! You turned away from me when I needed you the most! Do you know how much that incident scarred me?! I can never look at any chewing gum the same ever again! I barely managed to escape going bald but sensei had to cut my hair because of it!" He had grabbed the silver-haired man by the collar of his shirt in the middle of his tirade, shaking him roughly.

Having had enough, Gintoki slapped him with the flyers in his hand.

"Then don't do stupid things in the first place!" He smacked him again for good measure. If anything, after waking up to such a horrid sight, Gin-san should be the one who was scarred!

Katsura glared up at him from the ground where the blow had flung him.

"I was just trying to do what you and Takasugi were doing!" He complained.

Before Gintoki could yell at him again or do anything drastic, a shadow loomed over both men. Looking up, his eye twitched as he saw Elizabeth staring down at them. For a moment, no one moved before the creature raised a signboard that said _what's going on?_

After a minute of awkward silence, Katsura dusted himself off as he stood up, clearing his throat as he did so.

"As I told you before, I'm offering my assistance to Gintoki," He clarified as if they weren't just screaming at each other earlier. "As a matter of fact, _here_." The long-haired samurai suddenly flung something towards the silver-haired man's face.

Gintoki caught it instinctively and visual inspection revealed that it was…a _magazine_?!

Not only that, it was EDO Plus Issue No. 150 that was released a week ago. He would know because Otae had carried a copy when she last visited them. Why the hell would this damn wig give him this trash in the first place?! The only people who really read this were those from the Okama Club and the gossiping women of Edo! Did Gin-san look like he belonged to either category? Sure, he still occasionally helped around as Paako-chan but that didn't mean anything!

"Oi, Zura–" His eye twitched.

"It's not Zura, it's Katsura." The man was quick to cut him off. "Last week's issue should be interesting for you. Use that to get your affairs in order. In the meantime, I'll help out in looking for Yoyo-kun." He waved around the flyer in his hand before turning to his pet. "Let's go, Elizabeth." With that, both of them strode away from him.

Wait, forget the damn magazine for a second, the flyers–

"What about—" Gintoki started to call out.

Elizabeth gave him a look over his shoulder, making the man freeze where he stood. When Gintoki didn't make a sound, the duck-like creature faced forward again and ran to catch up with Katsura.

**oOo**

"Now this coming week will be unlucky for Libras, especially if you're a sugar addict with no job," Ketsuno Ana chirped that beautiful afternoon. "You should watch out for chameleons and S-people who holds a grudge against you. But don't worry! Just remember that your lucky number is _15_ and lucky color, as always, is blue. However, this week is also the chance to reconnect with people and mend relationships—"

_Oi, you're being too specific!_

Otose suddenly blew clouds of smoke into his face without warning.

He coughed at the smell, waving off the smoke frantically with his hands.

"Oi, baba! What the hell?" He sniffed, offended really.

"If you came here to drink then I'm gonna have to kick you out to the curb, you punk." Otose didn't even look at him, inhaling from her cigarette once again though, thankfully, she stopped from blowing smoke towards him.

Ugh, he hadn't wanted to be reminded of the cigarette smell. After losing half of what little money he earned from finding those cats to pachinko, Gintoki had come back to the snack bar. Unlike what Otose suggested, he didn't really feel like drinking right now. To be honest, he hadn't felt like doing anything these days but it was like everybody was suddenly out to get him. How was Gin-san supposed to have some peace and quiet around here?

"It's not like that." Gintoki groaned as he proceeded to lay his head on the counter.

"You can't hide from those kids forever." The old woman remarked as she finally turned off the TV.

Gintoki sat up. "I am _not_ hiding. I've just been busy!"

Otose gave him an unimpressed stare.

"Uh-huh. Then why did you hide out behind the counter when they came in looking for you a while ago?" She raised an eyebrow at him rather condescendingly.

"They're already what? Sixteen? Eighteen? Those two should stop depending on Gin-san for every little thing." He nodded before propping his elbows on the counter, covering his mouth with interlaced hands. "If I had to hold their hand at every step, then they'll never learn to stand on their own feet. The other day, Kagura tried to be a woman of the house by finally trying to cook her own rice. Granted, she ended up almost burning down the kitchen but it's the thought that counts, right?"

"If you lot damage anymore of the property, I'm tripling the rent next month." Otose coolly put in. "I'll tell Tama to watch you, just in case. Can't have the whole place crashing down on our heads." She snorted to herself.

Though, it wasn't long before the mention of her name summoned the robot maid into the bar as well. Since it was mid-afternoon, there weren't that many customers yet and Gintoki all but had the shop to himself for the time being. Gintoki watched her warily, just in case she brought out her flamethrower because he still hadn't paid last month's rent.

As if to prove him right, Tama readily approached him, broom in hand.

"Good afternoon, Gintoki-sama." The green haired robot greeted him with a small smile.

"Yo, Tama." He inclined his head.

"Yamazaki-san stopped by twenty-seven minutes ago," Tama informed him as she pulled out an envelope from her sleeve. "and told me that this should be delivered to you at all cost. I also ended up giving him a few recommendations in using different types of oil that go well in lubricating certain metallic joints, that's why I hadn't been able to pass it to you immediately." She placed it on the counter and slid it towards him.

At that, Tama gave a small bow before leaving to presumably clean somewhere.

Gintoki eyed the envelope blankly.

He'd been getting these kinds of things from the resident cyborg every week. The other ones were as mind-boggling as his existence as a mobcop. To be honest, he didn't know if he had the patience to go through this again. There was just something about knowing what kind of idiocy was awaiting future Gin-san if he decided to humor this.

Sighing, he decided to get it over with.

It read, _I've made another discovery this week, danna!_ That was the usual introductory line to the whole madness.

_Observing criminals has brought to my attention that a lot of factors can influence the eating habits of certain individuals. The most notable are personal factors (taste, cooking abilities, knowledge of food, etc.), societal factors (relationships, influence of peers), occupational factors (work, stress), and environmental factors (availability of resources, food prices)._

_Depending on the leading percentage of a certain factor, someone could develop bad eating habits._

_So, I conducted a study through observing one notable person in the work force:_

_1\. Breakfast is always skipped – moodiness, asks me to commit seppuku twenty times in a day instead of the usual ten.  
_ _2\. Not enough sleep – appetite for lunch is influenced, more often than not forgetting it if not reminded.  
3\. Emotional instability – the midnight snack routine seemed to be a default result paired with #2.  
4\. Food choice – mayonnaise had always been unhealthy in large amounts._

_To conclude this, target has been compromised._

_Further surveillance showed that societal and occupational factors are the leading causes. Most effects are determined by the amount of mayonnaise consumed in a day and the following number of intakes. Improvement of these factors would—_

Gintoki calmly shredded the whole thing. He should've known.

For that matter, just what exactly had this idiot been observing from those criminals?! Was this where their taxes went to? He should really file a complaint about receiving these letters, maybe they could tell Robozaki to actually do his damn job right. He might've been upgraded physically but his moronic brain was still the same as always! Why was Gin-san the one left thinking about these things?

"So, how is he doing?" Otose casually asked him.

"How should I know?" Gintoki groused as he picked up the shredded pile to throw away.

**oOo**

Despite what others liked to believe, Sakata Gintoki knew how to choose his battles.

That was why he was cradling a swollen cheek as he trudged between the two teens inside the theater. He wasn't even running away in the first place but they kept acting like he would! While Kagura had refrained from dragging him by his perm or his b*lls, he could've done without a kick to the face. He was the boss here so why was he the one being led around by these brats? As it was, the violent one seemed to be in a better mood, even humming under her breath as she cradled a large bucket of popcorn.

"This movie better be worth it," Gintoki grumbled under his breath.

"Did you say something, Gin-chan?" The she-devil turned to him with bright predatory eyes.

"The main character this time is Otononaji Jou's sister who is supposed to be out to avenge him." Shinpachi cut in as he read through the pamphlet, eyes glinting with excitement. Maybe Gin-san had misjudged the teen who just really wanted to see the movie. "There are also other people from the first movie and the sequel has a timeskip. I think a lot are looking forward to those aged-up characters too."

"But it's gonna be different without him." Gintoki remarked with a yawn.

"At least respect the one taking revenge for Jou-aniki!" The glasses yelled at him as they entered the cinema.

Once they found their seats though—

"Oh."

He spoke too soon. Because if his eyes weren't deceiving him, that was Okita smirking at him with the gorilla shyly waving from behind. No, what stole Gintoki's attention was the person at the front of that little parade who was staring at him in dubious shock, something that Gintoki must be mirroring. His fingers twitched before he turned to stare at Shinpachi who only offered him a helpless shrug.

Before he could make a strategic retreat, Kagura kicked him lightly at the back of the knee.

"Gin-chan, you're holding us up! We want to sit already, yes?" She barked impatiently as he staggered forward.

_Oiiiiii! You two are obviously working with those guys!_

Scowling and making sure to project as much displeasure as he could, Gintoki marched towards his seat. Since this was a premiere, the whole cinema was packed and the staff had been strict in the seat number regulations. By the time the thought to change seats with one of the brats crossed his mind, they were already firmly positioned in their seats while the only available one was right beside someone.

"—this has your name written all over it, you damn brat." Someone growled.

"This is the premiere so a lot of people are going to be watching," Okita blandly replied. "To see danna and the others here of all people, what a _coincidence_."

_There's obviously nothing coincidental about this!_

For the record, Gin-san had seen this coming ever since that day Shinpachi had brought up watching the movie.

So, why the hell did he allow himself to fall for it?!

He figured that he would be too immersed in the movie once it started. Kagura wasn't wrong to say that he and someone had the same taste. He _grudgingly_ enjoyed the first movie so he was just halfheartedly looking forward to this one. Though, he couldn't help but twitch when he heard the familiar pull of a cap followed by the squirting sound of mayonnaise being heavily deposited. Gintoki hated that he even recognized it.

Still, that wasn't what really annoyed him.

"Oh, that's Yoko-kun from the first movie!" He heard the gorilla whisper in awe once the kid who was now clearly a young man appeared on the screen.

"They did a good job in finding an older lookalike," Okita remarked from beside him.

Kondo hummed in agreement.

For a while, all of them were engrossed in the film. At least, until Shinpachi spoke this time.

"Jou-san's fighting style is wilder and much flashier than his sister's," The glasses observed quietly. "But she gets the job done. Why did the dog need to evolve too? The writer really needs more original plots." He sounded disapproving.

"I can't believe they'd tarnish Chubu's memory like this," Kondo stated, sounding upset on behalf of said pooch.

"Well, he was useless in the first movie," Kagura sounded bored.

One of the other movie-goers in front of them glared.

_Oi, stop! Just watch the fucking movie, damn it!_

While those four were having the time of their lives, Gintoki had to endure the tense silence with someone.

This went on for a while with them blurting out commentary to each other. Even though he was taken by Otononaji Fu's story, Gintoki couldn't help the occasional eye twitch the longer he was subjected to their observations. In fact, he was itching to yell at them all for being so goddamn noisy but one of the staff caught his gaze and gave him an evil eye worthy of Otae on a mission to eradicate a gorilla. He wasn't even the one causing the disturbance, what the hell was he being singled out for!

He placed his hand on the armrest to his right without thinking about it but instead of the leather exterior, his hand landed on top of a cold hand.

Gintoki immediately snatched it back, feeling the point of contact burn.

For the briefest of moments, red met blue before he looked away resolutely.

**oOo**

"Oi, you really planned this, didn't you?" Gintoki muttered under his breath before Shinpachi unsubtly elbowed him on the ribs.

"Shut up, Gin-chan." Kagura stared at him irritably before going back to the menu.

"You don't have to worry, Gin-san." The glasses murmured back. "We already talked to the old man and he said that he wouldn't mind not reopening for another three more days since his daughter's sick with the flu. Now, if you can stop being a kid for once, do _something_ and just order some food."

_Who are you calling a kid?! I don't want to hear this from someone whose first kiss was with Shikigami food!_

Why was he in such a moody state? That was easy because he'd been dragged to a restaurant against his will right after the movie. Shinpachi had even gone with him to the restroom when Gintoki had claimed that he needed to pee. If that was all, Gintoki would probably be even the one leading the charge. As it was, the one who'd led them here was Kondo who had someone and Okita with him. Judging by the thin cut on someone's cheek, it was safe to say that someone had been pulled along against his will as well.

Right now, he, Shinpachi and Kagura were seated across someone, Kondo, and Okita.

"It's been a while since we all went out like this, hasn't it?" Gorilla stared at all the members of the table. "Order anything you want, it'll be Toshi's treat!" He announced without preamble.

"Oi, Kondo-san–" Someone squawked in shock.

Kondo laughed sheepishly. "It's gonna be embarrassing if we suddenly leave but I kind of, uh, forgot my wallet back at the barracks." He then clasped his hands in front of him. "I promise I'll pay you back! So, please shoulder this one for now, Toshi!" He pleaded.

"Yes, shoulder this one since you're saving up a lot more money these days, Hijikata-san." Okita put in, already perusing the menu, maroon eyes briefly flickering in their direction.

Someone gritted his teeth but didn't say anything in response.

For a moment, their table fell into one of the most awkward silences Gintoki had the misfortune to participate in. To be fair to these guys, he knew exactly why he was here. Just because he did didn't mean that he would be making it easy for them or he would just give in. The orders were fairly simple. Udon for Shinpachi, a tempura bento meal for Okita, a gyudon for Kondo, and six assorted donburi bowls for Kagura.

"Coffee." Someone merely said.

"That won't do, Hijikata-san." Shinpachi cut in with a frown. "You're the one paying for us and you're not even going to eat?" His brows furrowed.

"Those are bad manners, yes?" Kagura crossed her arms over her chest.

"Haven't you heard of the saying that after a good meal, one can forgive anybody." Okita chimed in as he fiddled with his phone. "Even one's own relation. Or ex-lover, in your case." His eyes shifted between Gintoki and someone as he said this.

_Sofa-kun, you're not even trying to be subtle about it!_

Before this could get out of hand, Gintoki turned to the waiter.

"I'll have the most expensive meal on the menu." He sniffed as his eyes landed on the dessert section. "Then I'll have a strawberry parfait, praline cheesecake, some mixed berry sorbet and, uh, I guess that's it." He closed the menu with a self-satisfied snap.

" _That's it?!_ " Someone asked incredulously before furious blue eyes turned to the waiter. "Oi, tell that certain degenerate that just because I'm paying doesn't mean he can do whatever he wants!"

Gintoki scowled as the waiter, whose nametag spelled out 'Keito', stared at him helplessly.

"H-He says you can't order those things." The young man told him nervously.

"Let that asshole know that it's rude to retract something once you've given it." Gintoki leaned an elbow on the table and propped his chin on one hand. "That's impolite and would probably call a lot of bad luck to him. Besides, I'm only seizing the moment. Hasn't he heard about all those women in T*t*nic who waved off the dessert cart?" He droned on, ignoring the glare he could feel burning holes through his face.

The waiter turned to someone.

"He says that he's not above exploiting your generosity." Keito explained bluntly.

_Oi, that's not what I said, Kate-kun!_

"Come on now, I don't think this is—" Kondo tried to placate, sounding worried.

"Inform that curly haired idiot that he and his bad luck can go to hell." The man told the waiter promptly who flailed in panic.

"Well, say that my perm's got nothing to do with this and that he can take his rotten money to hell with him!" Gintoki was quick to snap in retaliation, feeling the familiar burn of competitiveness smoldering within him.

Before he knew it, he and that someone had shot up in their seats and slammed their hands on the table.

"Why don't you say that to my face, bastard?!" They screamed at each other with a glower.

 _Huh_ , when was the last time Gintoki had a conversation with this man again? Did this count as a conversation? Probably just a few weeks ago but, for some reason, it felt a lot longer than that. Not that he was counting or anything! Though, the moment they realized that they finally ended up addressing each other directly, he didn't know who was more surprised between them. Both of them grimaced before turning away in unison.

"I'm going back." Someone announced as he abruptly stalked away from the table and out of the restaurant.

"Wait, Hijikata-san—" Shinpachi tried to call him back, half-standing.

"I hope you're satisfied now." Gintoki raised his eyebrow at them and all four suddenly found the ceiling interesting. Whatever. "Well, I wasn't hungry anyway. Enjoy your meal." He waved off as he also made his way out.

No way was he staying after the scene they made, especially when other customers were being nosy.

"Who's going to pay for the food?" He heard Kagura ask.

**oOo**

The next day, the kids and Sadaharu were out of the house.

Not that Gintoki wanted to know what else they were up to. That whole debacle at the restaurant was enough. To think that they even managed to rope the gorilla and Okita into it. It was absolutely unbelievable. Admittedly, if things had been normal, he might even fool himself into thinking that things hadn't changed. As it was—

"Why am I even thinking about this stuff in the first place?!" Gintoki complained as he sat up at the sofa where he'd been lazing around all morning.

No, that was enough, damn it!

The latest issue of Jump placed on the table caught his eye so he decided that he just needed a distraction. Well, maybe some plot about muscle heads and magic schools would do the trick but the moment he picked up the volume, something fell out from where it had been wedged between the pages.

EDO Plus Issue No. 150 greeted him in all its glossy glory.

He forgot about this one when Katsura had thrown it in his face the other day, not that he knew why he kept it with him in the first place.

Gintoki should really throw this out before one of the kids caught him with this trash.

" _Last week's issue should be interesting for you. Use that to get your affairs in order._ " The damn wig had said and he looked so certain that it would 'assist' Gintoki in whatever problem he thought the man was facing.

This predicament was similar with his dilemma regarding Robozaki's letters. To do or not to do.

Well, if anything, this should prove to be enough of a distraction where he could just plot ways to shave Katsura's hair off his head right after. So, with only a little trepidation, Gintoki found himself opening the thing that could probably destroy his life. That wasn't an exaggeration. He'd seen people fight over a lot on TV about the stuff published in this magazine serialization. It was a wonder they hadn't been shut down yet.

Also, there's a sticky note written with 'MUST READ' attached to a particular segment—

> **_The Relationship Rules:_ **
> 
> _How to Recognize Romantic Love (are you in love or are you constipated?) ……………………… page 4  
>  How to Make Someone Fall In Love With You (miracles sometimes exist) ………………………… page 6  
> Identify the Current Relationship Status (say no to complicated things) …………………………… page 8  
> What Kind of Couple Are You? (is the relationship bad or worse?) …………………………………… page 9  
> How to Get Back With Your Ex (they say true love never dies) ………………………………………… page 12_

The last one was actually circled repeatedly with black marker. At that, Gintoki abruptly slammed it closed and threw it on the floor in secondhand embarrassment.

_Oi, what the hell are you even reading Zura?!_

Also, something like this actually existed?! Was that why Otae was reading this? To improve her single life?! Why was his once-comrade carrying around something like this in the first place? He'd caught a glimpse of a lot of sticky notes there so that meant Katsura had thoroughly studied this shit. Or why did he even think Gintoki would need this?!

Then again—

Despite what he liked to believe, Sakata Gintoki wasn't a smooth operator.

Also, for the record, he would like to sue every TV show he'd watched so far for making it look easy. Once the drama was done, the major battles were over, and the happy 'ending' was reached, they made what came after look so pathetically simple and effortless.

It wasn't like Gintoki was basing real life on those. However, when one lacked the experience and there were no other people to take example from, he needed to make use of what little resources he had, _okay?!_ So, who could blame him when he extracted what he could from those shitty drama shows? Not like relationships came with a manual that they could just follow step-by-step or with a cheat sheet where he could crosscheck what they did right or wrong.

But life had always been unfair that way.

Granted, the first two months were pure bliss.

They had established a routine by the third month. While the fourth and fifth month had been about spending time with each other's respective family.

However, it had started to settle down by that fifth month and halfway through, that was when things started getting a little bumpy.

While their bond had developed over the years, Gintoki forgot that they could easily set off each other in the strangest ways before they got together. But he had only waved it off because even when they started dating, they still bickered from time to time. That was _normal_ of them. And he still had fun teasing Hijikata most of the time. So, there had been that. He simply forgot that it couldn't be the case all time.

Sometimes, they had an argument over the smallest things and it would escalate simply because they had been coincidentally in the same volatile moods that day. Thankfully, those were far and few in between but it always left Gintoki feeling like the asshole of the day especially since Hijikata's way of dealing with heavy stuff was by drowning himself in work. By the end of the day, depending on who yelled first, that person would buy dinner and they'd try to hash things out from there.

Things were going smoothly by the sixth month until they finally faced that wall in their relationship.

To be honest, Gintoki forgot the whole sordid details of that argument. But it was the first time in all their bickering or fights that neither person had wanted to give in.

So, after all was said and done, what could a magazine actually tell him now?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (1) First of all, I wanted to thank everyone who read, enjoyed, and supported my works for the GinHiji fandom. It's because of your kind words that I found the courage to continue sharing my works here. Forever grateful for your kindness.  
> (2) Just wanted to bring in EDO Plus and this is absolutely _not_ related to my work 'The Ultimate Hack Is To Remember To Use The Forgot Password Option' or any of my works.  
> (3) If you want to reach me personally, I'm **@avisleeh** at tumblr.


	2. Chapter 2

The thing about having been in a relationship with someone for six months was that they left obvious traces in your life after you got together.

At the bottom of his closet where he'd stashed it, the cleaning equipment needed for sword maintenance still sat there. Someone hadn't bothered reclaiming it so Gintoki had simply left it there and would kick it farther back if he ever caught sight of it. He often wondered if the man ever remembered the thing and simply decided to discard it. Gintoki kept it because he thought that he might need it if he ever encountered a job that would require its use and nothing more.

Neither he nor Shinpachi used it anyway seeing as they mainly favored a bokutō over a katana and Kagura had her own supplies provided by Umibouzu as Yato artillery came with specific tools to be able to maintain it.

One morning, he had to wake up Kagura and saw her cuddling with that giant yellow koala bear that had been a gift from someone.

"Oi, Kagura," Gintoki shook her. "We have a job today, remember?"

When that hadn't garnered a response, he tried pulling out the stuff animal from her arms. It was no use as she had an unbelievably strong grip on the thing. Gintoki pitied the person she would ever try to sleep with because this girl was going to kill that poor soul in her sleep. Not that she was allowed to sleep with anyone at least until he, Shinpachi, and the baldy had approved of it. So, that's going to be, uh, ten or twenty more years into the future.

Oblivious to his thoughts, she went on snoring loudly in her closet.

His eyes went back to the stuffed koala bear.

"Oy, go wake up this glutton already." No answer. "Why does she insist on having you beside her anyway?" He grumbled before his brows furrowed and he slowly laid his hand on the koala's surprisingly fluffy form and he could see _some_ appeal in hugging something like this—

Until a punch launched him across the office.

"What are you doing, Gin-chan?" Kagura's sleepy voice reached his ears from where he'd crashed back to his room. "You were doing something weird just now, yes? How dare you touch Mayomaru? What if he gets your natural perm?"

"My perm isn't contagious!" _How many times do I have to tell you that?!_

He suddenly remembered why he detested that koala bear. Gintoki would never allow himself to be tempted by its softness again. _Never!_

Later, he had to pick himself up from the floor where Sadaharu had slammed him earlier one afternoon in response to his joke that he would give him to Gedomaru as revenge for biting his head. Gintoki acted like he didn't see the extra pair of slippers wedged under his sofa. Not like anyone was going to miss it.

When they were having lunch, Gintoki blinked at the taste of the stir-fry that Shinpachi had come up with for the tofu they got on sale earlier. To be honest, he hadn't been expecting much since it was either this or pickled vegetables again and they were tired of having egg-on-rice. The glasses had always been resourceful so it wasn't surprising. But for some reason, the teen looked a bit down when he served it.

Shinpachi smiled sheepishly when the silver-haired man finally asked.

"Ah, this was a recipe that Hijikata-san gave me before. I've always wanted to try it." He admitted as he rubbed the back of his head. "I don't know if I got it right, though." The teen laughed quietly.

Gintoki wasn't one to waste food, especially with Kagura in the house, so he still had his seconds.

"Ah, Sakata-san!" The old bartender of the bar he frequented called out to him while Gintoki was making his way to the pachinko parlor. "Some new bottles arrived from Oshima last week! It's been a while since you guys drank at my place so I already reserved one for you and—"

"Sorry but Gin-san is a changed man, ojii-san." He raised his hand to stop him there.

"But you were drinking the other night with some guy in sunglasses—" The old man seemed confused.

"That's probably just a guy who looks like me." Gintoki spoke matter-of-factly.

The other frowned. "But the man called him Gin-san." He pointed out bewilderedly, probably at how Gintoki had just referred to himself earlier. "And he wore the same clothes as you. I'd also know your voice when you're wasted, especially when singing offkey to My Neighbor Pedoro's theme song." For some reason, this geezer was determined to get on his case.

"There are other guys who liked impersonating me." The silver-haired man reasoned with a yawn. "Edo is made up of weirdos. And Pedoro-kun is a legend." He told him sternly.

The old man slumped in defeat. "Ah, I guess I'll just offer it to the Vice—" He continued with a bit of dismay.

Gintoki waved as he trudged away. "Good luck with that."

Then there was that café outside of Kabuki-chou who had a limited promo of giving away desserts for free if he could finish off one of their ultimate giant parfaits in an hour. Of course, since this was Gin-san whose first love was probably sugar, he'd finished it in forty-three minutes. He still had a commemorative photo of the event at the café's hall of fame, picture taken with someone who'd been there to watch and support him gorge himself on free sweets.

Even now, the photo still hadn't been taken down. One of these days, he would accidentally set that collage on fire.

There were a few more things but—

**oOo**

He hummed in confusion.

"Anou," He started off as he stared between the two packages of toilet paper in his hand, addressing the store clerk. "What's the difference between this super deluxe cotton and silky premium edition? The silky one is 200 yen more expensive but no matter how I look at it and compare them, the two products look exactly the same. What's Gin-san missing here? Is there a new trend of tissue that he's been missing out on?" His brows furrowed.

Shinpachi's list had said the _Sepia_ brand but he hadn't specified what kind, only to get the one with single-ply.

Gintoki had been standing in the tissue aisle for something approaching fifteen minutes already. Normally, he'd just get the cheaper one and be done with it considering that he'd used way worse things to wipe his ass with when he had to take a dump. But that exact thinking had taught him that having toilet paper was a luxury and, thus, choosing one needed to be treated with utmost care.

Hasegawa, who had been hired by this grocery store, stared at the two packages thoughtfully.

"Did you check the back? What does it say?" The madao asked him.

"Oi, you're the employee here, shouldn't you know your products better than anyone?" Gintoki berated with an irritated frown before showing the man what was written at the label. "The super deluxe cotton is said to maximize 'softness and feel' while the silky premium edition advertises 'wiping strength and ease'. What the hell is that even supposed to mean? Can you even have one without the other? How can they expect a customer to just know these things?"

"Give me a break, Gin-san. This is only my second day here. I can't even answer what makes organic butter better than a grass-fed one yet. I didn't even know butter could eat." The man rubbed the back of his neck, obviously nervous. "Can't you just buy both and see for yourself?" Hasegawa stared at him pleadingly.

Gintoki wasn't deterred. "So, you're saying we should test them out?" He said as he went on to open the super deluxe cotton one.

"Oi!" Hasegawa shrieked in panic as he grabbed the opened package from him. "What are you doing?! You can't just open it like that here! You haven't paid for it yet!"

"Ah, you're right." The silver-haired man replied as he also handed the silky premium edition towards the brunet. "Here, take this with you too. Go take a dump and use both then tell Gin-san which is better and if the silky one deserves that 200 yen." He gave the madao a mighty push out of the aisle.

"I can't just go and disappear to the toilet just for that! I'm working! I don't even think it's allowed!" The brunet complained, rounding on him in alarm.

"Then I guess I'll just have to ask the store manager then." He leisurely walked towards the old woman who wore a sash indicating the position.

"Fine! _Fine!_ " Hasegawa ran forward and blocked his way. "J-Just wait here. I'll test these things out." The man turned away from him in defeat, trudging slowly towards the restroom of the store with both packages in hand.

He waited for five minutes. Then ten.

When it looked like Hasegawa wouldn't be showing himself anytime soon, Gintoki opted to hang out at the snack aisle instead. The list said to buy something worth 500 yen at most only, underlined repeatedly for emphasis. That was fair considering that his strawberry milk and Kagura's sukonbu were listed separately from it. To his frustration, the store obviously ran out of strawberry flavored pocky. So, the next best thing that caught his eye were the large bags of strawberry-flavored Kitk*t bars.

However, just as he was approaching it—

Gintoki blinked.

He blinked again just for good measure.

Shinpachi wouldn't have gone this far, right? That disaster back at the restaurant should've already been evidence that any further attempts should be ceased at all costs. But, then again, the glasses had never risked leaving the grocery money alone with Gin-san unless something important really came up. Hearing Otae's cheerful voice in the background prevented him from asking what the commotion had been about.

He stepped to the right.

Someone stepped to their left.

Left. Right. Left—

_Oi, why the hell are you copying Gin-san?!_

"Are you copying me, asshole?" Someone growled at him.

"That's my line!" Gintoki was quick to snap as they both paused, baskets in hand as they stood within the snack aisle. "Today isn't even supposed to be your day-off so why the hell are you even here? Don't you have slaves doing this for you, huh?" He went on mockingly as he gestured towards the man's yukata, knowing exactly how this tone got under the man's skin.

Instead of irritating him though, surprise clouded someone's features.

What? What did he say?

Replaying his words in his mind, Gintoki had to fight to keep his taunting expression firmly in place.

Also, now that he thought about it, what had happened to that unspoken rule where they didn't say anything to each other? This was obviously those people's fault! That incident back at the restaurant had obviously shaken up the status quo! Normally, this asshole would just give him a glower worthy of an incensed vice-commander who caught one of his subordinates slacking off before storming away.

The past few weeks had been a gradual process in that regards: from snarling insults at each other brimming with hostility, to glaring fiercely if they ever crossed paths and somewhere along the line, it became avoiding each other.

_Oi, say something! Don't make it any more awkward than it already is!_

Wasn't there a manual somewhere about how one dealt with these things?

"Not that it's any of my business." Gintoki eventually broke the stalemate, raising an eyebrow when the man shifted his basket out of Gintoki's sight. "But I can see that you finally left your well, huh? Finally saw the ocean out here with us lowly citizens?" He tried not to sound anything about it.

"Unlike you who couldn't swim, frogs can survive in the ocean just fine." The man threw back with narrowed eyes, probably recognizing the jab for what it was.

"Oi, that's not how the saying works!" He protested indignantly.

Someone scowled. "Whatever."

Returning his glare, they did this thing where they clumsily sidestepped each other. By the time they got past one another, Gintoki promptly grabbed a Kitk*t bag before he paused and stared over his shoulder.

He watched as that familiar back walked away from him, strides brisk as always.

It was a sight that Gintoki was slowly getting used to.

_I'm such an idiot._

Letting out an aggravated sigh, he went on to get what he needed. He didn't even check what of the Sepia brand he had grabbed, just picked up something with the thought that he wanted to get out of here.

By the time he got to the counter, Gintoki was feeling restless as he tapped his foot on the floor.

"Oi, what's this?" He asked as he grabbed the box of P*cky Double Strawberry from the discarded basket beside the counter.

"Ah, one of the customers cancelled their purchase of that item." The cashier informed him with an exasperated smile. "Said that it got mixed up. Well, too bad since that's the last stock of the day." He shook his head as he continued scanning Gintoki's purchases.

A Kitk*t bag was worth 400 yen while the P*cky Double Strawberry was worth 198 yen. Since this was Shinpachi who practically had the price of what they needed already listed somewhere and, thus, had already estimated the total cost of this week's grocery run, he would know that Gintoki had purchased snacks that was 98 yen more expensive than stipulated. Well, at least he'd been able to use the 10% discount coupon and get that free one tray of eggs from the store's weekly promo.

"I'll take it."

It wasn't until he was leaving with his purchases that Gintoki felt like he was forgetting something.

He shrugged. Oh, well.

**oOo**

"—one of Prince Baka's pet had been missing for the past three days." Hanano Saki grimly reported as she stood beside the purple-skinned Amanto.

"Oi, you didn't even try to correct yourself!" Prince Hata's nasally voice protested.

"So, if anyone spotted a large chameleon-like creature, please report it to the authorities immediately." Hanano ignored the complaining prince beside her, even elbowing him out of the screen. "They're called Kameroboko and we caution you about engaging them. These creatures can blend in with the scenery and are already said to be the size of an average adult human male so enraging it could cause them to grow up to three to four times their size—"

The news was cut off in favor of the channel for their noontime drama.

"That could be important, you know?!" Shinpachi complained from where he was seated beside Kagura at one of the sofa.

The Yato frowned. "That stupid prince losing his pet was nothing new, yes?"

"After what happened two years ago, you'd think he would've already learned by now about keeping dangerous pets." Gintoki offered nonchalantly across from them.

"Well, I guess." Shinpachi subsided uncertainly before their attention went back to the drama.

"And knowing him, that pet's going to be trouble—" The silver-haired man cut himself off, watching as Kimiko appeared and revealed Kazuki's long lost twin sister, _the fuck_. "Oi, oi, oi, this is why I keep telling you to stop watching these things! It keeps getting more and more unnecessarily complicated! That twin sister is the best friend of the mistress! This show already used every known cliché in the book already!"

"Seeing as you watch enough to know who that twin sister is, I don't think you really have room to talk!" The glasses berated him.

Gintoki scrunched his face at him.

"Oi, Kagura," He turned to the Yato who had her eyes fixated on the screen. "This episode's just a rerun. You could've just seen this last week. What was so important that you had to go out anyway?" He finally asked the question that had been bugging him.

Gin-san wasn't the overprotective parent. He generally didn't question these teens what they were up to when they disappeared from the house without him. It was just that after the way they had set him up at the movie and restaurant, he had the right to be cautious, okay?! For that matter, EDO Plus Issue No. 150 was currently stashed at the bottommost part of his drawer buried under some old issues of Jump that he'd missed out on in the past year and none of these two had discovered its existence yet in their household.

For a moment, Shinpachi visibly hesitated.

_Oh no, at least learn to make a better poker face, Patsuan._

Kagura had no such compunctions. "Well, it's Monday, right?" She asked, still watching her drama.

 _Ah_. Gintoki stared at her blankly. "So?"

"It's Toshi's day-off." She clicked her tongue in annoyance, giving him a brief glare. "Just because you two stopped going out doesn't mean me and Shinpachi stopped being friends with him, yes? He treats us to lunch. And he sometimes goes to the park with us and watch over Sadaharu. You can't get mad since it's the same for you, yes? You still hangout with that sadist and you still share drinks with the gorilla at anego's club." She was quick to defend while Sadaharu lifted his head behind her and stared.

"I didn't say anything." He raised his hands in surrender.

"You better not or I'll make you bald." Kagura grumbled under her breath.

"Oi, I heard that!" Gintoki squinted his eyes at her suspiciously before turning to Shinpachi with a raised eyebrow. "So, not that I'm interested or anything, how come this is the first time that I'm hearing about this?" He asked with a bit of confusion.

Because these two knew that he wasn't the kind of person who would let his own issues affect them like that. Despite his current rift with someone, Gintoki still knew what kind of person he was and the man wouldn't let their problem influence his relationship with the kids. Honestly, Gintoki had no problem about that at all. Hence, this couldn't be the teens actively hiding it from him. Also, if this had been a weekly get-together of sorts, then, surely, he would've noticed something like that happening, right?

"It's because all you do these days is laze around at the house or blow all your money at pachinko." Shinpachi stared at him disapprovingly, crossing his arms over his chest.

Before he could protest that it wasn't _all_ what he was doing, Kagura cut in.

"He sometimes asks about you, you know?" She turned to him thoughtfully, finally deigning to give him her full attention while the commercial was still on.

"Eh?" His eyes widened, caught off guard.

"Like if you finally contracted diabetes from too much sugar." She snorted while Shinpachi shook his head exasperatedly beside her.

_Ugh, why am I not surprised?_

**oOo**

After they broke it off, Gintoki had expected the members of the Shinsengumi to hunt him down like they did for the gorilla before.

However, as soon as one week had passed, he still remembered some members seeking him out alright. But not for the reasons he'd thought of. The first time it happened, he'd been at the pachinko parlor and finally gaining some winning streak little by little. When Shimaru had found him, he was shocked when the other members fell on their hands and knees in front of him, pleading to Gin-san to get back together with their boss because, apparently, the man had been unleashing his anger on his poor subordinates.

At the time, he'd gotten just as infuriated at the mention of someone that he'd beaten some of them up for even approaching him about it.

That continued for three days.

At the bar. At the public restroom in the shopping district.

Since no one had tried to arrest him for assaulting police officers, Gintoki assumed that they didn't want to let someone know.

So, the next time he saw them, he'd threatened to bring up what they had been doing to their vice-commander if they ever attempted something like that again. Or if they tried to meddle in any way, shape, or form, _someone_ would definitely hear about it.

Needless to say, since their vice-commander had effectively put the fear of God in them, Gintoki never had to deal with _that_ again.

Unfortunately, not everyone fell in this category.

"Thanks, danna." Okita Sougo said as Gintoki served him a plate of dango, voice flat but full of hidden implications.

 _Why did I insist on doing this job again?!_ He wondered for the nth time. _You better appreciate this, old man!_

After finally having their opening a few days after the movie, the old man had asked Gintoki to look after the shop once he realized that he'd caught the flu from his daughter who'd already recovered and was now looking after him. Since the teens were out on a different job, it fell on Gintoki to mind the shop for the day. This wasn't the usual shop that Okita frequented so Gintoki knew all too well that the brat had deliberately gone here to mess with him.

"Well, I better get back," Gintoki started taking a step back. "You know, more customers to serve—"

"It's just us, danna." The sadist raised an eyebrow at him, eyes bright with challenge. "Have you forgotten what I told you months ago?" He feigned disappointment as he shook his head.

Who the hell could forget something like that?

Gintoki frowned. "Well, you gave me a step-by-step instruction about what you called the perfect assassination." He said dryly. "Not like it's gonna be any use to me. Despite what you like to believe, Gin-san may be an S but he hasn't reached that low point in his life yet." He squinted his eyes.

"I said that the secret for that is to make it look like an accident," Okita told him. "where no one will suspect you at all. Put yourself in a position where motive wouldn't exist and only move when the target would least expect it. That way, no one will look twice at the corpse you're going to leave behind. I did explain that well, right?" The young man droned on monotonously, eyes still fixated on the silver-haired man.

_Oi, should a police officer be casually talking about how to murder someone?!_

"Not like one more corpse would make a difference to you, right?" Gintoki smiled, all sharp teeth.

Okita smirked. "Just so we're clear. Now, why don't we talk about this like proper adults?" He grabbed a stick from the plate and took a bite.

"Since when did you start counting yourself as an adult again?"

"Compared to you and Hijikata-san, I think I can always count myself as one." Okita blandly responded as he leaned back on his hands, stick of dango dangling from his teeth. "It's gone on long enough, you know? Don't you guys think that it's finally time to talk about it?"

"What's there to talk about?" Gintoki added, tapping his foot on the floor. "The kids, I can understand. But what about you, Sofa-kun? What's in it for you? You trying to offer help out of the goodness of your black heart?" He couldn't help but quip a bit sarcastically.

"It's Sougo. Contrary to what you want to believe, I'm not entirely without kindness, danna." _Like hell._ Okita's eyes crinkled at the edges, something in his gaze brewing calculatingly. "I never pegged you both to be some kind of three-day monk, though." He ate the remaining dango from his stick. "And don't be mistaken. I'm just curious, that's all. Wondering how much I can poke before either of you finally loses it."

_Why do I get the impression that he's like a kid who discovered his new pet project?_

"Oi, you have no idea about the journey of becoming a monk. It could be harder than we realize!" Gintoki defended as he finally occupied the empty space on the bench beside the sadist.

"Hard enough to give up?" came the truly cutting question.

Of course, if there was anyone who would cut to the chase like a rampaging bull, it would be this brat.

Gintoki rubbed a hand through his curls.

"It's not like that at all." He groaned, annoyed at everyone getting on his case. Was someone dealing with the same shit as he was? Because if he wasn't, Gintoki would like to call out the favoritism right there.

He felt those maroon eyes observing him closely.

" _Oh_." Okita sounded like he had some sort of epiphany, something Gintoki didn't appreciate coming from him. "That's it, isn't it? It's not about giving up at all but the _exact opposite_. That's why this thing went on for so long." He shook his head in apparent amazement. "Wow, just _wow_. I know that you're both idiots but not _that_ kind of idiots." He remarked rather bluntly as he grabbed another stick from his plate and ate.

"I don't appreciate hearing that from someone like you." Gintoki deadpanned.

"Well, if this is what you really want, then there's nothing I can do." Okita told him as he stood up, leaving some coins on the bench. "I'll leave you to your job, danna." He paused. "Just a reminder though, that even monkeys fall from trees. Even you two." He waved and finally left.

The man released the breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding in the first place.

_Wait, did he just call Gin-san a monkey?! Oi!_

His gaze landed on the plate that still contained one stick of untouched dango. Without prompt, Gintoki grabbed it and took a bite. Then promptly choked.

When the fuck did that sadist put hot sauce on this?!

**oOo**

Gintoki shouldn't have let himself be tempted by free drinks.

Of course, this was Sakamato Tatsuma he was talking about and nothing in what this man did was ever simple.

"Isn't it great, Kintoki?" The moron laughed loudly once they had entered Otae's cabaret club that night. "Look! I even invited Toshi for you! This way, you won't feel out of place when Tendo-san and I spend our time with Otae-chan and Oryou-chan!" He went on obliviously as he manhandled the silver-haired man into the booth containing said individuals.

To be honest, he would've cancelled his attendance right there and then if he hadn't been graced with the she-gorilla's bright smile. Full watts directed at him. Also, when was the last time Sakamoto had visited again? Was it two or three months ago? And he'd been too busy to properly reply to the idiot's letters. However, he knew that the brunet perm got along swimmingly well with Kondo and Gintoki had expected the commander to have at least told him what had gone down since last month.

Apparently not.

"Take a seat beside Hijikata-san, Gin-san." Otae told him as she gestured to the empty space beside the wary vice-commander.

"Actually, I just remembered—" Gintoki replied nervously.

Never mind about the setup, Gin-san just didn't want to get involved in her schemes. Cause this has her name written all over it.

"I have something else to do too—" Someone also put in, probably also realizing what he'd unknowingly walked into.

"Nonsense," She cut him off. "Oryou-chan and I agreed to do this if the gorilla and Sakamoto-san could arrange a triple date. Isn't that nice of them?" She gestured to where a beaming Kondo was seated beside her.

_Do you even know how dates work?!_

"Besides, Toshi's right here!" Sakamoto pointed out brightly, arm still slung around Gintoki's shoulders.

"Look, you don't know what you're doing!" Gintoki hissed at him quietly as he shook him off. "It's not what you think, okay?! Me and, uh, _Toshi_ already went on our separate ways. So, whatever you're thinking, you're wrong!" His eyes strayed to Otae who was watching their exchange rather calmly.

Sakamoto laughed.

"Then isn't it better? After being separated for so long, this will be a good opportunity to spend time with each other again! If I'd known that you two were that busy, I would've visited sooner!" He patted Gintoki on the shoulder, grinning at him widely. "Don't worry, Kintoki, I understand! What are friends for?" He chuckled as he left him standing by the edge of the booth to take a seat beside an obviously uncomfortable Oryou.

_You clearly understood nothing, dumbass!_

Where was Mutsu to kick this idiot around when you needed her?

"How long are you going to stand there, Yozozuya?" Kondo called him with a laugh as Otae refilled his cup.

"Yes, Gin-san. _How long are you going to stand there like an ungrateful idiot?_ " He didn't imagine the dark miasma around her, right? Or the way her voice had deepened ominously. But she wasn't beating up the gorilla. Was he the only one seeing this?!

Cautiously, Gintoki took the seat beside someone.

"For the record, I didn't know that Sakamoto was involved." The man beside him murmured sullenly as he eyed Otae suspiciously.

"Well, we're here, aren't we?" Gintoki sighed in annoyance and prayed that he'd at least get out of this with his peace of mind intact. "At least, we know who to blame this mess on. Let's just get this over with." He resolutely tried to not think about their proximity.

Why was it always—

Otae clapped her hands to get their attention.

Gintoki shook his head from those thoughts.

"So, to make things interesting, I came up with something we can do while on this 'date'." She pulled out an empty sake bottle from underneath the table and proceeded to slam it there. "Since this is a couples' date, we get to do this in pairs." She sent a brief apologetic glance towards the stubbornly silent Oryou. "So, I propose a game of Truth or Death. This way, we can also get to know about each couple—"

"Oi, that's not what the game's called!" He immediately protested. "Don't project your murderous urges out here!"

"O-Otae-chan? Isn't that a bit extreme?" Even Oryou sounded uneasy, damn it!

"Ah, this way, if there's that threat looming over you, the chance of someone going for truth and _actually_ being honest increases." She delivered matter-of-factly.

"Kondo-san," Someone called out calmly as he turned to his commander. "Don't tell me that you're allowing this? You're the _police_. Please tell me that you're not going along with this." He didn't sound confident about Kondo's decision though.

"Don't worry, Toshi. I'm sure that Otae-san has the best intentions." The man ignored the issue in favor of accepting the forkful of banana that Otae was feeding him.

_What's the best about leaving corpses out here?!_

Sakamoto merely chortled before he pulled out something from the inner pocket of his coat.

"Let's make it more interesting, Otae-chan!" He proposed as his eyes glinted behind his sunglasses. "Instead of using a bottle to spin for a turn, let's use this instead." He gestured to the black _revolver_ in his hand. _What the fuck, Tatsuma?!_ "See, this is a new item in the market. Have you heard of the game _Russian Roulette?_ " He asked as he placed the revolver on the table, oblivious to the horrified look Oryou was giving him.

Otae's eyes shined. "Of course, who hasn't?"

_Oi, just what kind of evil is brewing right before my eyes?_

"This way, they can still take the chance to get out of answering but it'll be a risk." He giddily explained, something he always sounded when another person liked his idea. "And don't worry, this thing doesn't have bullets. But if it fires, something _still_ happens. This item is a hit amongst teenage Amantos." He explained as he slid the gun towards the brunette woman.

"W-Will this be really safe?" Gintoki couldn't help but wonder.

"He said that it doesn't have bullets, right?" Someone added, not sounding assured.

"The rules are simple. The one to answer is started off by who the gun is pointed the closest to, after that will be in alternate if it points in a couple's direction. The turn for questions will rotate amongst the pairs so we all get a turn each. Which should be about the couple." Otae explained as she held up the weapon. "Let's start then!" Otae cheerfully declared as she stood up and placed the revolver at the center of the table before giving it a spin.

Gintoki waited with baited breath.

Though, the table suddenly jerked before the gun's muzzle came to a halt pointed in someone's direction.

"Oi, who the hell kicked the table just now?!" The vice-commander demanded indignantly.

Gintoki stared at Otae.

Would this be how the course of the game would be from now on?! _Oiiiiii!_

"What are you talking about, Hijikata-san?" She held her cheek with a hand. "So, what will it be, Truth or Death?" She smirked at them.

Someone stared at the gun nervously.

"T-Truth."

Otae's expression cleared up. "So, why did you and Gin-san break up?" She asked bluntly.

Awkward silence descended upon the booth.

"What?" Sakamoto jolted in surprise. "You two broke up?" He asked in confusion as he stared at Gintoki.

_That's what I've been telling you a while ago, you moron!_

Red met blue. Someone was giving Gintoki an unreadable look, expression carefully closed off. To be honest, a lot of people had tried to get it out of him, especially the kids. At that time, he'd been very angry at the situation and he'd just promptly laid the blame on someone. In truth, Gintoki hadn't stopped questioning it either. Because in the grand scheme of things, it was easier to be angry than to admit that—

"I'll take Death." Someone suddenly declared before bending forward to grab the gun from the table.

Slowly, the man pointed the muzzle at his temple.

The reactions were instantaneous when the trigger was pulled. Oryou let out a small scream. Kondo looked worried while Sakamoto and Otae watched calmly. Gintoki jerked in his seat, hand outstretched towards the other before he was aware of what he was doing.

 _Click_.

Wide blue eyes stared back at him.

The silver haired man promptly brought his hand down and turned to Otae.

"So, what's next?"

For some godforsaken reason, the game _still_ continued. Was this the reason why they were the only people at this club? Did Otae plan this all along? The vice-commander spun the revolver this time. To his annoyance, the table was kicked again. However, Gin-san wouldn't take that shit without a fight, damn it! So, he also kicked the leg of the table and watched as the gun jerked before it came to a slow halt—

—pointed in their direction.

_Oi, does this thing have a magnet or something?!_

"Since Hijikata-san already played, it's your turn this time, Gin-san!" Otae clapped her hands before she pouted. "Although, the one who gets to ask a question this time are Sakamoto-san and Oryou-chan. So, Truth or Death?" She crossed her arms over her chest.

"Truth." He readily answered because the thing hadn't been fired yet and the chances of it suddenly doing so had increased.

Hopefully, the question wouldn't be as prying—

"Ah, I have one." Sakamoto leaned forward and, despite the grin on his face, his gaze was probing. "Do you hate Toshi?"

Gintoki's eyes darted to someone for a moment before he bent forward to grab the revolver.

Instead of raising it to his head like the other did, he merely spun the thing.

"No, I don't." He simply answered and left it at that, ignoring the stares.

Sakamoto laughed at his answer.

Thankfully, the next turn was on Oryou who eagerly chose Truth while someone just asked if the brunet man was the last person on earth, would he have a chance with her? It was now Gintoki's turn to laugh this time as the answer had been a resounding 'no' while Sakamoto whined about changing her mind.

"It's okay, don't give up!" Kondo encouraged.

As the gun rotated for the next turn, Gintoki smirked when he saw the man beside him give the table a retaliatory kick when Otae went with her schemes again.

It ended up pointing at Otae.

"I choose Death." She firmly decided and for some reason, sounding excited to try her luck.

When she pulled the trigger this time, though, a loud _bang_ echoed in the club and she went down.

They screamed.

**oOo**

That night, after Sakamoto had explained that the revolver actually contained a toxin that knocked out someone for approximately an hour, all of them had brought Otae home. It fell on Gintoki to explain things to a panicking Shinpachi when the game of Truth or Death with a dash of Russian Roulette mixed in was brought up. Upon hearing that, the glasses slapped a hand on his forehead before rounding on Sakamoto with a tongue-lashing of the decade.

Now, it would be a while before Gintoki went to anywhere with Sakamoto again.

And all of them went on their separate ways in an awkward note, to say the least.

The next day, Shinpachi had called in and said he wouldn't be coming, still worried about his sister. Upon hearing what happened, Kagura had announced that she would be visiting the Shimura dojo to see for herself that the older girl was fine, taking Sadaharu with her.

So, what was Gintoki doing that afternoon all by himself?

He was seated on his chair while laid out on the desk was—

> **_What Kind of Couple Are You?_** (Katsura's sticky note said 'You should explore what your relationship had been.') ** _  
> _** _(is the relationship bad or worse?)_
> 
> Before starting off with this article, please proceed to _page 16_ of the magazine for the Couple Survey. This is to understand the chemistry, the factors that influence the health, the challenges faced, and expectations in your relationship.

Why was he reading EDO Plus Issue No. 150? That was simple.

It was Sakamoto's fault.

"I guess that explains why you kind of look glum," The man had laughed as they walked back together, sporting a swollen cheek courtesy of Shinpachi's foot. "I don't know why you and Toshi separated. I won't ask. But, in my opinion, whatever led to that decision clearly isn't making either of you happy." Sakamoto told him with all the straightforwardness that he was known for as he stared at Gintoki thoughtfully.

"Did I ask for your opinion?" Gintoki grumbled.

"Well," Sakamoto smiled as he faced forward. "I didn't expect you guys to split, that's for sure. I don't think anyone did and that's why they're asking 'what went wrong?'." He pointed out.

That was the question that had stolen Gin-san's precious hours of sleep.

It wasn't like he didn't know.

Here he was now, skimming the magazine not because he agreed with that idiot or anything. In fact, he recalled that question. Did he hate Hijikata? Honestly, he didn't. And he surprised even himself by how true that was even after everything. What kind of relationship did they exactly have? He couldn't put it into words so, yes, he was opening this trashy magazine to see if it was worth a read like Katsura had told him.

> **_ COUPLE Survey  
> _ ** _ (way to understand your relationship better) _
> 
> Please take note that there are no right or wrong answers in this questionnaire! This is only a guide to help you understand the dynamics of your relationship with your partner.
> 
> 1.) Were you close friends before you dated? ( _Yes_.)
> 
> 2.) Do you and your partner accept each other for who you are, without trying to change the other? ( _Of course, we went into this thing aware of each other's faults. Come on, we might not be experienced in these things but we know at least that much, damn it. Gin-san's not that naïve!_ )
> 
> 3.) Are you and your partner sexually compatible? ( _Oi, why do you have to ask that?! It's none of your business._ A long, long pause. _Well, the sex was amazing. So, I guess?_ )
> 
> 4.) Are you happy in your relationship? (Pause. Pause. _Yes, I fucking was._ )
> 
> 5.) What do you think makes your partner smile? ( _Mayonnaise, of course_. Hmm. _He liked it when I brought him lunch at work. He loved it when the kids invited him to hang out with us. He smiled when I kissed him goodnight on the lips— damn it._ )
> 
> 6.) What do you hate most about your partner? ( _How he can sometimes put work above everything._ He grimaced. _How he always complained about my gambling habits. How he can be oblivious about how attractive he is and then—_ _what's the point of answering this again?!_ )
> 
> 7.) What are you most insecure about in your relationship? ( _Nope, not going there._ )
> 
> 8.) Is it easy for you to express your feelings to each other? (This was a tricky question. He and Hijikata were taciturn by nature when it came to these things. So, it had always been like pulling teeth when it came down to it _but_ they understood each other when it came to this thing so there had been that.)
> 
> 9.) Have you and your partner set some rules about what is tolerable and _not_ tolerable in your relationship? ( _What? Why do we need these things? It was bad enough that the bastard seemed to make it a hobby in making a code for every little thing, no way was he going to allow their relationship to have some kind of dating hatto too._ )
> 
> 10.) Do you completely trust your partner? ( _Of fucking course._ )
> 
> 11.) What's the most memorable time you spent with your partner? (There were a lot, of course. But the one that stood out was—)

It had been during the third month.

He and the kids had a job that day in cleaning the local pool to be used by the elderlies of some nearby retirement home. Considering that the place had been neglected for months after that fight with the Seibouists, it had taken quite some time to finish until late in the afternoon. By then, they had been tired on their feet and just wanted to lie down somewhere. By the time they came back to the apartment, Gintoki remembered the way Kagura had bounced on her feet when she spotted a familiar pair of shoes by the entrance.

"Toshi!" She had called loudly upon entering.

"Good afternoon, Hijikata-san." Shinpachi gave a small bow.

Gintoki didn't even greet him, just gave him a brief kiss at the corner of his mouth before putting his ass beside him on the sofa. The man wasn't wearing his coat or cravat and he had his sleeves rolled up to his elbows. He didn't see any traces of it but he bet that the other had just finished some paperwork while they were gone.

"Sofa-kun didn't give you any trouble?" He yawned.

"I made sure he's too busy to try that for today." Hijikata snorted before he turned to the kids. "I brought donuts." He said as he pushed the box of said treats towards them.

Kagura whooped in joy before diving for the box.

"Thanks, Toshi! You're the best!" She grinned as she put a whole donut in her mouth.

"Slow down, Kagura-chan." Shinpachi sighed from beside her before giving the vice-commander a tired smile. "Thank you, Hijikata-san, you always bring over something when you visit." He told the man before picking up a donut for himself.

Hijikata waved him off.

"Oi, leave some for me too—" Gintoki complained as he watched Kagura devour her third donut.

"Those are for the kids." The bastard lightly bumped his knee against his. "I bought you something else, it's in the refrigerator so stop pouting at me." He reprimanded quietly.

Gintoki squinted at him.

"But Gin-san wants donuts too, you know?" He found himself whining as he rubbed his shoulder. "Ah, I'm so tired. Those stains were no joke. It took _hours_ to clean that shit. My shoulders are sore. My feet are sore. My joints are sore—"

"What are you, an old man?" Hijikata rolled his eyes and before he could protest that he was still in his prime—

The man had pulled his head down and Gintoki found himself awkwardly plopping on his side, head pillowed on the vice-commander's lap. Shifting to avoid the kids' stare, Gintoki opted to just gaze up at Hijikata's chin by laying on his back, chest swarming with warmth.

"Don't listen to him, Toshi," Kagura put in after swallowing. "I did all the work there, yes? Gin-chan just spent most of the time complaining!"

"That's what's he's good at," The man replied, combing a hand through Gintoki's curls.

"You almost destroyed the pool, Kagura-chan." Shinpachi was quick to scold.

"Pfft," The Yato huffed. "But, _but_ you should've seen Gin-chan a while ago, yes? He squealed like a girl when some cockroach crawled up his leg—" She recounted excitedly, always on the opportunity to obviously humiliate Gin-san!

Before he could protest that _she_ had ran away from him the moment she saw said cockroach though—

Hijikata laughed.

And the conversation continued on like that.

.

.

.

Why had he been angry again?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had fun writing this chapter and I hope you enjoyed this. :D
> 
> *So, someone asked me why I focus more on humor (shenanigans) these days with my GinHiji fics. These past few months have been really tough on me so I write these pieces as a way of cheering myself up. Gintama always had that magic in it where just an episode could wash off a bad day with good humor. I know that a lot of you are going through tough times so I hope that my works at least gave you a few laughs or, at the very least, made you smile. :D
> 
> *On another side note, I deliberately referenced some Japanese sayings here to give hints of the situation. If you can name a few, I’m glad. :”>
> 
> *Last side note, the questions in the magazine are actually part of a psychology couple questionnaire that someone shared with me from their relationship counselor. And the premise of this story is actually based on that someone’s story too.
> 
> Thank you guys for your support!


	3. Chapter 3

Gintoki had established some sort of routine for the past six months that he still found himself still trying to carry out.

Friday had always been Sukiyaki Night.

This was held in the Yorozuya household. Instead of just the four of them, it had become between them six as Okita and Kondo had crashed in once they heard of said occasion. Then sukiyaki had transitioned to some sort of what the majority had been craving at Friday. They had barbecue, udon, some katsu, a variety of omurice, or just an array of dishes from whatever ingredients the two groups had gotten.

As long as they kept the mayonnaise or hot sauce out of reach from certain individuals and they held back Kagura from being a disaster in the kitchen, it all turned out fine.

So, on Friday afternoons, he would still sometimes find himself including the local market in his route to see if anything was on sale.

"Ah, Gin-san! We have some fresh beef out from the countryside." The old lady who always gave him discounts called on him. "Along with some new crates of vegetables. I'll let you be the first to take a pick." Ah, damn it, this woman was always so considerate to Gin-san and she always gave him the best of her goods.

How could Gin-san even try to brush her off?

Sunday usually would be him taking a detour to the Shinsengumi Headquarters to pick someone up despite the other insisting that he could just go straight to the Yorozuya right after since the man's day-off was the next day. When Kagura was there with them, she would insist on having movie nights with them. Sometimes, Gintoki would find himself bribing her to spend the night at Otae's for some much-needed alone time.

Now, Sunday and even Monday still remained as days where the Yorozuya didn't take any jobs and in the late afternoon would find Gintoki either catching up on his stack of Jump volumes, watching movies with Kagura until late into the night, or out drinking at the bar.

Tuesday mornings were spent helping Shinpachi prepare breakfast.

"Ah, you don't have to, you know?" Shinpachi told him as the teen brought out the eggs.

"Well," Gintoki scratched his stomach. "I'm already awake so might as well do something productive." He shrugged as he brought out the _hangiri_ to cook the rice.

The glasses stared. "You could just go back to sleep," The teen said quietly, pausing. "I don't mind."

Gintoki ignored that in favor of pouring the rice on the wooden tub and washing it by the sink. He didn't want to go back to sleep, damn it. What was up with the glasses sending him back to his futon, anyway? When Gintoki was spending his time just sleeping, the teen nagged at him about being lazy. Now that Gin-san was actually doing something useful of his time, the teen was now instead telling him that he shouldn't bother!

"Could you just make up your mind?!" Gintoki glared at Shinpachi.

"Oi, why are you taking it out on me?!" Shinpachi glared back. "And don't cook too much rice, there's only three of us." The teen sounded a bit wary as he said this.

He snorted. "There's no such thing as too much rice when that glutton's in the house."

"I-I'm just saying!" came the embarrassed justification.

Wednesdays were usually reserved for lunch with him at the snack house below the Yorozuya place where someone would meet him on his break. Kagura was conveniently out on a walk with Sadaharu at this time while Shinpachi either accompanied the Yato or was around the dojo assisting his sister with her overweight students. Normally, Gintoki would be adverse in having lunch here but someone got along surprisingly well with the old hag that lived downstairs.

"Don't you have a job?" Otose asked him, already on her second death stick.

"Would I be here if I have?" He sassed and got some smoke in the face for his trouble. "O-Oi! Watch where you blow that thing! No one wants to smell the chimney in your mouth, you hag!" He spluttered as he frantically waved it off, seated on a stool by the counter.

"Gintoki-sama," Tama called him as she approached. "I'm afraid that if you're waiting for Hijikata-sama, he'd already passed by forty-two minutes ago." The android informed him.

His stared at her incredulously. "I wasn't waiting for anyone!"

"Don't bother with this one, Tama." Otose cut in, staring at Gintoki dryly. "He's a stubborn idiot. And _you_ , I don't care if you spend your Wednesday afternoons here. I already said what I had to about your issue. But if you're just going to mope every time you're here, you might as well just go out there and cause trouble." She took another drag of her cigarette, exhaling sharply into the air.

"Have you been monitoring your stress levels properly, Gintoki-sama?" Tama asked him worriedly. "Emotions are said to focus one's attention and motivate them toward a specific course of action. If you find your behavior lackluster lately, then it might imply some repression of—"

"I just ate something rotten the other day." Gintoki answered, waving it off.

"Food poisoning is a serious matter." The green haired android said, narrowing her eyes at him. "Is this the issue that Otose-sama was talking about? Then please focus on rehydrating yourself to replace the lost fluids. I can also give you a diet plan that would be easy for you to digest and what certain food or substances you need to avoid—" She continued to lecture as she released some kind of whirring sound which signaled that she was serious about giving him that plan and list right on the spot.

Time to go.

" _Fine_! Fine!" Gintoki pushed off the counter and hastily made his exit. "I'm gonna go to the pachinko! Just leave my diet out of this!"

Thursday nights were for drinking, sharing a quiet toast to themselves. He still went out to get his buzz but he just changed the bar he went to. It wasn't like he was avoiding anybody but ever since he blew off the old man the other week, he was getting these sympathetic glances that he totally didn't appreciate! How could a guy drink in peace when he kept getting those looks?! Not to mention, it was starting to affect the other patrons—

What had been about Saturday again? Ah, Gin-san had a busy schedule right there, huh?

**oOo**

The 16th of July marked a big day in Edo.

A lot of people were full of well wishes for the celebrant, Edo's Prime Minister. The whole day had been a security nightmare for the police, no doubt, as a lot of citizens were pushing their way through to give the girl of the day their warm greetings. Nobume had even been featured outright snarling on live television countless of times. In fact, he'd seen a lot of the national police force surrounding the podium as their leader gave her speech and thanks to all the people who remembered her special day.

While the morning and afternoon were spent with the citizens of Edo, the Prime Minister had chosen to hold a small party to celebrate with her closest friends that evening.

The Yorozuya were invited along with a few characters that Gintoki would rather not meet. But the night wasn't about him so whatever he wanted didn't factor at the moment.

It was the only reason why he came here in yukata, the same one he'd worn when he first came back to Edo.

"Kagura-chan!" Tokugawa Soyo squealed, dressed in one of her formal kimonos, as she ran and enveloped the Yato girl into an enormous hug. "I'm so glad you came!" She gushed excitedly.

"Of course, was there any doubt?" Kagura scoffed before wrapping her arms gently around her friend. "Happy Birthday, Soyo-chan!" The Yato greeted warmly as she lifted the other girl on her feet and spun them around once.

Soyo's laughter echoed before her eyes caught sight of them.

"Ah, Shinpachi-san, Gintoki-san and Sadaharu!" She waved happily. "Thank you so much for coming!"

Sadaharu barked as he bounded forward, bumping his head against hers.

"It's the least we can do," Shinpachi returned her smile, carrying the large messily wrapped present in his arms that Kagura had insisted she would accomplish. "After all, how can we decline an invitation straight from the Prime Minister herself?" The glasses stared at the two girls fondly. "Happy Birthday, Hime-sama." He gave a small bow of his head.

"There was free food so—" Gintoki doubled over with a yelp as Shinpachi elbowed him. "I-I mean, congratulations to another year on earth." He wheezed, glaring at the teen.

The dark-haired girl chuckled at their antics as she gave the large dog an affectionate pat on the head.

"Thank you!" She grinned. "Well, in any case, your presence is appreciated." Soyo told them as she finally separated herself from Kagura. "Since the renovations at the palace was finally done, I figured that I could just hold the housewarming party in time for my birthday. Come on, the others are waiting by the courtyard!" She gestured to the small gathering of people by the tables.

"Wait! Wait! What about your gift? We got you something, yes?" Kagura bounced on her feet, vibrating with restless energy.

"If you want, you can place it at the table with the other presents." Soyo told them, her eyes sparkling with curiosity at the present in Shinpachi's arms. "I'll open them before the party ends so I can thank each person directly." Her eyes then landed on Nobume who was talking with Matsudaira by the corner. "I'll leave you here for a moment, so please help yourself to some food and drinks." She gave Kagura's hand a squeeze before striding towards the blue-haired young woman.

"Oi, you heard her." The Yato turned her nose up at Shinpachi.

"Fine." The other's expression became miffed but still did as he was told.

Before Gintoki could excuse himself to preferably wolf down some much-needed food since it wasn't every day that the Prime Minister treated them to some high-quality cuisine, Kagura ran forward followed by Sadaharu. However, instead of the buffet, she honed on the figure who was standing by the side talking to Katsura of all people. Gintoki knew from the wrinkle in his brow and the way those blue eyes kept shifting somewhere that whatever Katsura was speaking about made him uncomfortable. Where was the gorilla? Or Sofa-kun, for that matter?

Of course, since Soyo had said close friends, the Shinsengumi wouldn't be far behind. Not after everything.

"Toshi!" She called loudly before jumping up to wrap an arm around the man's neck in a headlock.

"What the hell is that brat doing?" He murmured under his breath as he watched the vice-commander yell and try to shake her off. It was a familiar sight that he'd grown used to whenever she greeted the man. Meanwhile, the large dog was being hugged by Katsura as the wig buried his face on his fur.

"Come on." Shinpachi pulled him along, the present in his arms missing. _When did he—_?!

"Oi, I'm hungry so I'm gonna go get some food." Gintoki was _not_ escaping, he was just famished, that's all.

"Then do the polite thing and greet some people first before going straight for the meal." The glasses rolled his eyes at him, grip unrelenting even when Gintoki tried to dig his feet on the ground. "Even Kagura-chan learned some manners." He continued, the implied _not from you_ was loud and clear which was rude, _oi!_

"We chatted with the celebrant, right? What more do you need?" Gintoki tried to discreetly dislodge himself from the teen's hold to no avail.

Since when did Shinpachi get this strong?!

Though, he straightened and made it seem like it had been his idea to approach all along once they were near them, resigned.

"Hijikata-san, Katsura-san!" Shinpachi called on as Kagura finally released her victim.

"Shinpachi-kun, Gintoki." Katsura nodded his head at them as he stepped back from Sadaharu, eyes zeroing on the silver-haired man. "Just the man that I was talking about. Your timing is impeccable, as always." He crossed his arms over his chest while someone's hand twitched, an obvious sign of his urge to throttle a certain wig.

Gintoki made a show of looking around. "Where's your pet? He isn't with you?"

"Elizabeth's somewhere," The long-haired samurai waved his hand dismissively. "For that matter, as I was telling Hijikata here—"

"The discussion's over." Someone firmly cut him off.

"As I was _saying_ —" Katsura tried to continue.

"Toshi says the conversation's over, so go bother someone else already." Kagura interrupted, giving Katsura an displeased look. "Or look for the gorilla instead, yes? Can't you tell that he has other business to deal with?" She stomped her foot, raising her chin in an obvious effort to stare him down.

The man appeared surprised before his gaze shifted between someone and Gintoki.

Katsura cleared his throat. "I-I see. Then I guess I'll look for Elizabeth." With that, he made a hasty retreat.

_Oi, at least take me with you, damn wig! You understood nothing!_

"Actually, I wanna eat already so—" Gintoki tried to get out of this situation but Shinpachi's hand was unrelenting. "Hey, you can't keep a hungry man here forever! I came here with the explicit knowledge that there's going to be some fancy food! This is harassment, okay?!" He hissed towards the teen.

"Is that all you have in mind when we came here?!" Shinpachi growled at him.

Apparently, they weren't quiet enough.

"Just let him eat. Otherwise, there'd be no end to his complaints." The vice-commander said wryly, giving Gintoki this exasperated look. "In fact, why don't you kids join him? I'm gonna go look for Kondo-san and Sougo before they start causing any trouble." When it looked like the Yato was going to protest, he flicked her on the forehead like he always did. "I'll see you later, brat. Now, keep yourself out of trouble, you hear?"

Kagura pouted as she rubbed her forehead. "Fine." She relented.

And this was only a few minutes in, damn it.

**oOo**

Coming over to the buffet table, Gintoki was by himself as Kagura had ran over to also catch up with Nobume while Shinpachi had been distracted by the arrival of Elizabeth with no Katsura in tow. If he hadn't made himself scarce there, he just knew that there would be no end to it. Ever since that disaster at the cabaret club, things between him and someone had died down to awkwardness. Which wasn't totally his thing. So, if he didn't see it, then nothing happened.

"Ah, are you fine just letting that guy walk away like that?" A familiar voice chimed in and Gintoki's eyes snapped to the man who peeked out from underneath the tablecloth, munching on a plate of yakitori.

He raised an eyebrow. "I'm not his keeper." His brows furrowed. "Were you invited? What the hell are you doing hiding there?"

"Well, I heard free food." Hasegawa shrugged as he nonchalantly went back to his food.

Gintoki thought that was the end of it as he went back to grabbing some karaage and sashimi. It had been a while since he'd gotten to eat anything this good—

"You know, I regretted it every single day when I let Hatsu walk out on me." The man suddenly said, voice sounding just a little bit melancholic at the mention of his wife. _Even you, huh?_ "Gin-san, you seem like the kind of guy who would regret this kind of thing too. So, if you're not fine with that, you should do something while he still has a reason not to walk away for good." The madao told him matter-of-factly.

"And how would you know what he's thinking?" He found himself nonchalantly asking, chewing on some sashimi.

"He still looks at you the way Hatsu looks at me." Hasegawa insisted, looking at home on the ground.

"Is that what you tell yourself?" Gintoki found himself retorting, annoyed that everybody apparently felt the need to give Gin-san a piece of their mind about this whole thing. And let it not be said that he could remain unaffected endlessly.

"Why do you think I still keep trying to find a stable job?" The man didn't seem to mind the snark before he stopped. "Ah, also, you should use the super deluxe cotton. Both of those tissue papers were tough but the cotton one feels softer. Now, I can confidently answer a customer if they ever need to choose between those two types too." _Damn it, Gin-san wasted 200 yen._ Hasegawa went to open his mouth but before he could say anything someone stepped on his head and smashed it on the ground.

If the Shinsengumi was in attendance, then another group being here was also a given.

"It's been a while, huh?" Hattori Zenzou remarked as he filled his plate with some sushi, foot still on the madao's head.

"Depends on your definition of a while," Gintoki deadpanned, seeing as he met this asshole last week while buying his Jump.

Then his gaze shifted to the unusually quiet kunoichi standing on the other side of Zenzou.

"It's nice to see you again, Gin-san." Sarutobi greeted him quietly, not quite meeting his eyes.

Well, okay, that one was totally his fault. To be honest, having gotten together with someone those months ago, Gintoki was fully aware that there were going to be people who wouldn't support the relationship. He just figured that he couldn't please everybody. This woman had been one of those people and had tried to harass them during the first month. At first, he thought that she'd eventually stop. But, after some time, he'd grown really annoyed about it.

To be fair, he could've handled it better. But he'd rather that Sarutobi hated him and moved on. He'd been very clear that there hadn't been a chance he would return her feelings.

Gintoki didn't know what Tsukuyo and Otae had told her but one day, she'd formally apologized to him _and_ someone and that had been that.

However, she behaved even more awkward than someone when they interacted nowadays. Like she was the actual ex instead. _What the hell was up with that?!_ So, he did his best to ignore it. At least, she hadn't gone back to her ways when the breakup had been known.

"I'm not one for this kind of atmosphere so I'm going to go over there." Zenzou pointed to somewhere random before trotting off with his plateful of sushi, not even acknowledging the groaning corpse he left behind.

_Oi, first Zura and now you too?! What's up with people leaving Gin-san to deal with this kind of things?!_

"S-So, how have things been with you lately?" He found himself asking as he took a bite of his karaage just to dispel the unease.

"As I told you months ago, I've accepted it." The purple-haired woman answered, fiddling with her chopsticks. "A-Actually, ever since then, I-I've been doing my research, you know? I-I mean Hijikata's not bad on the eyes either," _Oi, what the hell are you getting at?_ He frowned. "and Gin-san had always been the most handsome in my eyes ever since. S-So, I-I need to know. It doesn't matter if you two had broken up—" She rounded on him with a wild gaze, a hand gripping his shoulder forcefully.

Gintoki tried to shake her off. "I already told you—"

She breathed heavily. " _No_!" She insisted, stepping closer and consequently, walking over Hasegawa's head too. "Hijikata wouldn't answer either! I was already rejected, _fine_ , but tell me who tops between the two—" He covered her mouth instantly, staring at her blankly.

On one hand, he was damn grateful that she hadn't resorted to stalking them to find out. On another hand, this was a topic he didn't want discussing with _her_ of all people.

He didn't even know what she wanted to do with the knowledge!

_Just what kind of perverted research are you doing?!_

"Does it matter?" He remained expressionless.

"Hmmmp-mmph!" came her muffled indignant response.

"What's happening here?" A familiar drawl cut in and Gintoki's eye twitched, sensing more trouble. "Isn't it too early for you to be entertaining other people, danna? Won't someone get the wrong idea?" Okita Sougo tilted his head towards the dessert table where someone and the gorilla were loitering as he grabbed some tempura for himself from behind Sarutobi.

In an instant, Gintoki removed his hand from Sarutobi's face.

"Aren't you treating me too much like a fish to a cat?" He couldn't help but quip, inwardly berating himself for falling for the little shit's bait.

The sadist smirked. "Don't overestimate yourself, danna." Okita then turned towards Sarutobi curiously. "About your question—"

Thankfully, the conversation there was derailed by the entrance of Soyo.

"Can the men present here give us a hand?" She asked sheepishly as she clasped her hands in front of her.

Hasegawa raised a trembling hand before it fell limp.

**oOo**

Gintoki banged his fist on the massive wooden door.

"Oi! Is this how you repay my kindness?!" He yelled angrily as he gave the thing a mighty kick. It didn't budge.

"I'm sorry, Gintoki-san," Soyo apologized from the other side. "But since they asked, I can't refuse! And it's been a while since I've tricked anybody like this!" She sounded giddy from managing to fool them.

_At least, sound truly sorry about it! Be thankful that it's your birthday today!_

"And if you force this door open, I've got one of Katsura's bombs attached here that'll go off." Okita's voice chimed in gleefully, obviously having been in on the plan. _Don't think I won't get you for this and that includes Zura too_. "We'll lock you up for two hours. So, while you're both in there, why don't you take advantage of it and have a trip down memory lane? Doesn't this bring up the _good times_?"

"Oi, Sougo, this is going to be seppuku for you!" Someone beside him gritted out.

"Well, uh, I tried to stop her," was what Shinpachi had to say for himself.

"Clearly, you didn't do enough!" Gintoki clenched his teeth, annoyed at having fallen for such an obvious ploy.

To be honest, Nobume's excuse that her men had been busy securing the perimeter of the palace should be clue number one. Gintoki had always seen those men at their beck and call regardless of what they were doing. Soyo's aides, while not as extensive back when the Tokugawa family dominated the bakufu, was still pretty damn sizable enough to set up that little feast at the courtyard which was clue number two that something wasn't right about the Prime Minister's request.

So, for her to need help in setting up some equipment for the fireworks display tonight which was kept in one of the palace's storage house should've made him suspicious.

But he'd been quick to accept the request to remove himself from the prior situation just to land in another one. Was that planned too?! At least, Hasegawa didn't get mixed up in this madness after having been knocked out by Sarutobi's foot.

"Kagura," He changed tactics, trying to inject as much plea into her name. "You're not really this cruel, right? Gin-san hasn't had any desserts yet and there's a chocolate fountain out there. You're not going to deprive him of his sweets, are you?" He asked while he felt his right hand clawing at the door, teeth bared.

"Sorry, Gin-chan." The Yato sounded anything _but_ sorry. "You've forced my hand. Also, this is punishment for forgetting to record this week's episode, yes?"

_That's what this is all about?! Who cares about Kazuki-kun's real dad at this point?!_

"And don't worry about the dessert, Gintoki-san!" Soyo spoke up again. "I'll be sure to have some set aside for you and Hijikata-san for later!" She promised but Gintoki would never be able to trust her ever again, not that he had done so to begin with considering who she was friends with.

"What about _me_? What did I do?!" The vice-commander interjected. "This isn't staying out of trouble!" He reminded as if it would make a difference.

"You've survived him before so you can do it again, Toshi!" Kagura merely said.

"Have fun, Hijikata-san." The sadist bid them and Gintoki leaned his ear on the door just to hear several retreating footsteps.

"Oi, you can't be serious!" No sound. "Oiiiiiiiii!"

They were really leaving them here.

To be honest, this eerily felt like last time all over again.

"Ah, this is all your fault." He groused to his unwelcomed companion for the evening. "Why did you allow yourself to be captured in this trap? Aren't you a vice-commander? Are you really this easy to fool? Is that all it takes?" He knew that he was just asking for a fight at this point but who cared? It was like one setup after another and he was honestly getting tired of it.

Not to mention, the only source of light was the tiny window above them but he could still just barely make out anything in the dark.

"I'm not the moron who carelessly entered this place and declared to leave it all to him," The man deadpanned. "I was content to watch you make a fool out of yourself but then your large dog threw me in here." He growled under his breath.

Gintoki snorted. "Defeated by a dog? _Tsk_."

"Unlike you, I don't abuse innocent animals."

"After what he did, do you still call that overgrown furball innocent?!"

The silver-haired man groaned as he leaned back on the door and slid to the floor in a boneless heap, pulling his bokutō from his hip to place on the floor. Ugh, he'd been eagerly looking forward to the alcohol after he'd savored every last drop of that chocolate fountain. Gin-san hadn't been able to sample those little shortcakes he'd seen arranged on the table earlier, damn it. He didn't bat an eye anymore when he felt a warm presence settle on his left. This was what those little assholes wanted, _fine_.

"Why can't they just leave us alone? It's none of their business, right?" He spoke in the dark. Huh, it _did_ feel like last time.

"Who knows?" Someone whispered. "Though, I can't imagine what they're hoping to accomplish by locking us up together again. They already tried this once." He suddenly snorted. "At least this time, we're not surrounded by the unconscious bodies of some terrorists." He recounted, sounding amused.

Ugh, of course this man would see being confined in a space with people they knocked out entertaining.

Speaking of which—

"Well," Gintoki paused before continuing casually. "It got you to admit to wanting to date the great Gin-san, right?" He found himself musing aloud.

"Like hell I did!" The vice-commander snapped, sounding embarrassed. "You were the shady guy who kept using questionable pick-up lines on me, you degenerate!"

"Which, for the record, it just went over your dumbass brain." He scoffed derisively.

Ah, remembering that now was just amusing. Though back then, it had frustrated him enough to want to pull out his own hair. When Okita had warned him that his boss was dense, Gin-san hadn't taken him seriously because Hijikata Toshirou was a grown ass adult. Apparently, he could still be proven wrong.

"Who'd want to go out with a depraved idiot like that?" Someone retorted.

"You did." Gintoki answered smugly. "Remember what you said? 'If no one would take your rotten perm, then I guess I can—'" He spoke but ended up choking when fingers jabbed him painfully on the side. _Why is it always the side?!_

"What about you, huh?! Saying something like 'I'll make space for your mayonnaise in my house, so if you want to—' Ow, what the _fuck—_ "

Gintoki had tried covering the bastard's mouth but ended up slapping him on the face.

They tussled a bit. The other even had the nerve to pull on his hair while a couple of stray punches connected as mere glancing blows due to the dark while they growled and snarked at each other. This was achingly familiar. Not because of those six months but because it made him remember why those six months happened in the first place. It hadn't been until Gintoki could feel the other's breath directly on his face that he found himself pausing.

His right hand was clutching the man's wrist while his left forearm was held in a vice-like grip between them.

Despite how much his mind was screaming at him to _move the fuck back_ , his traitorous body remained stock still in that position.

If he just moved his head a bit, he could fit his face against someone's the way it always did when in this proximity.

If he just closed that distance, he could almost taste that familiar lingering smoky flavor.

If he just—

Both of them jerked away from each other when the sound of fireworks echoed above them, snapping them out of their stupor.

_What the hell was that?_

**oOo**

The night before Soyo's birthday, he and the teens had gone to the 100-yen store at the shadier part of Edo.

"—what do you think she'd want as a sibling to Mayomaru?" Kagura was speaking as she stared at the assortment of stuffed abomination in the aisle.

Gintoki swept a surreptitious eye towards the things on the shelves. To be honest, every furry object there would be every little kid's nightmare. The stitches were hideous, cotton seeming to pour out of the threads, and some had very contrasting patches to their fur. Others were missing an eye or had been replaced by buttons and some looked like they had been through a transplant gone wrong with questionable limbs attached to its missing ones.

Compared to these atrocities, Kagura's yellow koala bear seemed to be a high-class item made of fluff.

"I don't think we'd find that Mayo-kun's imouto-chan or otouto-kun here." Gintoki found himself telling her as he stayed away from a giraffe stuffed toy that had googly eyes. _It's not staring at…me, right?_

"Kagura-chan, why do you think she'd want one of these, ah, things in the first place?" Shinpachi asked her as he cringed away from what looked like a chimera of dog, horse, and fish(?) that the Yato had picked up and was inspecting with a keen eye.

That was a valid question. Their current Prime Minister was known for having questionable preferences but he was certain this wasn't it.

Kagura pouted. "Soyo-chan's been so busy leading Edo so much, you know? She's carrying all that burden with her, along with Nobutasu, to make sure that the country their loved ones left behind for them won't fall." She told them with a sigh. "When Toshi gave me Mayomaru, it made me very happy, yes? Even if it's not as cute as Sadaharu. So, I just wanted to get her something that could cheer her up like that, I guess."

When put like that, he found it hard to shut down her attempts in finding a 'sibling' for the infamous Mayomaru. Hence, they had ended up buying something from Don Quijote instead.

Hearing those words from Kagura, how could he remain firm in ignoring Hijikata after that?

Right now, he couldn't even muster up the usual annoyance. Though, he also hated this awkwardness in the air. How many minutes had passed already? Were the others enjoying themselves out there while the two of them were trapped here? For that matter, they wouldn't forget about them, right? _Right?_

Not even a table full of sweets would be enough for this.

He cleared his throat. "So, I heard that you go out with the kids on your days off." He found himself commenting.

"Well, I've got nothing better to do on those days." The man remarked, a smile in his voice. "Your kids are pretty relentless, you know? It wasn't like I planned on avoiding them in the first place. I can tell that they really went to find me because they're scheming. But they never tried anything when they were with me so I let it go." He paused. "Besides, you're one to talk. Kondo-san always tells me that he goes out drinking with you on occasions and let's not talk about how many times Sougo taunts me in a day."

"It's not like anything changed with that gorilla, you know?" Gintoki rubbed the back of his neck, discomfort getting ahold of him. "You should learn how to better discipline Sofa-kun, though. That brat keeps getting bolder and bolder every day. For the record, I'm not gonna let this incident slide." He would make sure that asshole would pay. With interest, damn it.

Hijikata scoffed. "Be my guest, I'd like to see you try and tame him."

Gintoki's eyes narrowed. "Just watch me then."

Another awkward silence.

What the hell was up with this atmosphere?!

"You know," Hijikata's quiet voice sounded. "at the beginning, I was just fine watching from afar. Even being allowed to stay and fight by your side if it comes to it, I told myself that that was enough. And I believed that. But then, the people around us just had to meddle and you just had to give me that same stupid look that you always did." The vice-commander sighed.

"W-What the hell are you saying?" Where was this coming from all of a sudden?

"Isn't it obvious?" came the rhetorical question.

He scowled. "If you're trying to make a point, then know that you're currently missing by a mile, asshole."

"I'm _saying_ that I wasn't expecting anything to come of it, you natural perm." Hijikata exhaled sharply.

Gintoki blinked in the dark and turned to him, wishing for the first time that he could see what expression the man was wearing right then. Because he couldn't see what direction he was coming from and he didn't want to let himself be provoked by those words.

Even so—

Before he could stop himself, he asked. "Did you regret it?"

He hated himself just a bit by how fucking needy those words made him sound. The bastard had no business in stirring him up like this. Not now _._

Hijikata hummed. A pause.

"For the six months that I had you, those were the best six months of my life." He told Gintoki, voice achingly calm in its candidness.

His hand shot out, fingers locking around an elbow in an almost painful hold. Finding this real.

_Then why—_

It seemed that Hijikata still knew his tells, enough to feel the sudden desperation in that action that Gintoki assumed was just nerves from being in the dark for too long. The question went unspoken but was heard loudly in the silence that stretched between them. His heart was beating loudly in his ears. For all that he was beside Hijikata again, he'd also never felt more distant to him than right this moment.

And Gintoki—

For the first time since they went their separate ways, he could finally admit even just to himself that he didn't want _this_.

Hijikata seemed to almost hesitate. "You already know why."

"Can we just—"

"Gintoki," The man cut him off. "We can't keep ignoring the hard part forever."

Ah, _of course._ That was the issue, right?

At that, he forced his hand to release him. He bit the inside of his cheek, nerves suddenly getting the better of him and not wanting to hear the answer he already knew. To be honest, he didn't even know where to begin. Or _how_ to begin. Gintoki could also recognize that this was Hijikata _trying_. Because even when the bastard had been as unforthcoming as he was these past few weeks, he had reached out right here and now.

He hated it. This uncertainty.

"Do we really have to do this now?" He found himself asking, aware that he was taking the easy way out.

He could feel the scorching glare directed at him.

Hijikata made a frustrated sound and didn't say anything for a moment before claiming, "Fine."

Before Gintoki could further say anything on the matter, he saw the flicker of the vice-commander's mayo lighter to presumably light up his cigarette. It had always been the man's way to distract himself from a matter at hand other than having the nicotine to soothe his obviously frayed nerves. The moment the little flame from the lighter illuminated what little of the surroundings it reached—

Gintoki found himself blowing out the flame.

That wasn't his imagination, right?

"What the hell, stupid perm?!" The vice-commander demanded angrily as he went to light his cigarette again.

Gintoki released a long exhale to snuff out the spark again as his hand found the hilt of his bokutō.

How should he do this?

"You see, Hijikata-kun," He sighed heavily, feeling the man's eyes on him. "Every person out there has an inner Taki-kun and he's a selfish little prick. He works overtime on his part time jobs and is always late to school. He dreams about being a girl once in a while so he felt obligated to dress up just to prove that he's still a boy. He goes to cafés sometimes because he has a sweet tooth always waiting to be unleashed–"

"I don't care who the fuck Taki-kun is!" Hijikata exploded. "Just get on with it!" His patience had obviously run thin.

"If you'd just let me finish," Gintoki clicked his tongue at him. "Then you'd know that there's something inside here with us that's certainly _not_ Taki-kun. I don't think it's anybody's inner self either."

As if just waiting to be acknowledged, they heard this weird slithering-like sound followed by noises that seemed like adhesive being peeled off repeatedly.

_Oi, just how long had this been here?!_

Hijikata yelped as he clumsily backed into Gintoki.

"What the hell was that?!" He demanded, the clank of his sword unusually loud as they both faced the side where they last heard it.

Gintoki could only think of one thing. "The other day, there was news about a missing pet, right?" He found himself asking nervously as he shifted his legs beneath him to crouch. "Something called Kamekameha or whatever. Has that been found already?" Those large unusual cone-like eyes and that shiny scale certainly screamed reptile.

"I don't think so." The vice-commander answered cautiously.

The man shakily went to light his lighter.

No chameleon abomination in front of them or beside them. However, the moment Hijikata made a sweep of his arm, Gintoki realized that the thing was right behind them.

"Don't—" Hijikata tried to stop him.

But the silver-haired man had already sent the creature flying with a swing of his bokutō.

By the time he realized that he'd forgotten something, it was too late as they heard loud crashing sounds followed by furious hissing.

**oOo**

"Ow! Be gentle, damn it!" Gintoki cried out as the Yato pressed an icepack on his swollen cheek rather mercilessly.

"This is what you get for letting some lizard-like alien smash you around, yes?" She scoffed as she further pressed the icepack roughly, standing behind the sofa. "You're useless, Gin-chan. In the end, we had to help you in beating down and catching some slimy iguana for Prince Baka a while ago. That idiot prince needs to pay us for making us do his work." Kagura complained with a scowl, pressing on the icepack again.

Ah, that fucking Kame-whatever had grown the size of a small house. It had been some kind of dubious miracle that Katsura's bomb by the door had weakened it.

But still—

"Oi! Stop that! Don't speak like you were a big help! We did all the hard work while you lot just watched from the sidelines! You only tried to help when it almost smashed into the buffet tables! I call foul!" He jumped to his feet and tried to put her into a headlock but the little brat jumped back and avoided him, making him momentarily forget his predicament.

"You do that all the time with us! An old man like you can use the exercise, yes?" Kagura retorted.

"You did _not_ just go there! I'm telling you, my hair's not white, it's _silver_!"

"Who says I'm even talking about your perm? I'm talking about your wrinkly face!"

"This is the face of a protagonist–" Gintoki stopped, realizing that the conversation had derailed. "And we wouldn't be facing that thing in the first place if you and Okita-kun hadn't locked us up in that storehouse to begin with!" He grimaced at the reminder.

To his surprise, the Yato fell silent.

Then she went around the couch and occupied the empty space beside him. Kind of stupefied at her sudden change in demeanor, Gintoki warily sat down beside her. This girl's moods changed faster than that chameleon could change colors. He watched her cross her arms before she huffed, puffed, and generally worked herself up. Letting her stew on her thoughts, Gintoki stared at the ceiling.

Before that stupid reptile entered the picture, he and Hijikata had been in the middle of something.

He still couldn't decide if the interference was a blessing or a curse.

"Are you mad?" Kagura suddenly asked him. "That we tried to set you up with Toshi again?" He stared at her in surprise, recalling how unrepentant she'd been earlier. This sudden solemnness necessitated that he messed with her for what had happened.

But he didn't feel like being an asshole right now.

"Not really." Gintoki waved off.

"Then why'd you try to take off the sadist's head, huh?" She asked as she rounded on him with curiosity.

He rolled his eyes. "That brat had been messing with Gin-san for quite some time now."

She went quiet again. There was obviously something bothering her.

"Gin-chan, why did you and Toshi need to breakup in the first place? Weren't you happy?" Kagura then just kind of stared at him with these round blue eyes, frustrated confusion brewing in her gaze.

He ruffled her hair. "There's a lot of complicated stuff about this whole thing that would go over your head. Don't worry about us, we got this."

She frowned in suspicion. "Same complicated as Kazuki's love for his father's mistress' best friend who turned out to be his twin sister?"

"Oi, don't believe everything you watch from those dramas, brat. It'll ruin your life." Gintoki warned, Kazuki's biological father couldn't be Kimiko-san's best friend who'd always been supporting them in the sidelines, right? That drama wouldn't be that stereotypical, right?

"But you watch them too, you lazy boss." Then she leaned towards him with an intensity that had been scarily reminiscent of Sarutobi earlier. He swore that he was going to beat someone up if this girl learned to ask him about who had been above and below in their relationship too. "So, do you still love Toshi?"

He flicked her on the forehead.

"Just go to sleep, brat." He said, pointedly not answering her question.

This day had given him a lot to think about.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I ended up rewriting scenes here so this took a while. Then I may or I may not have been distracted by a certain game related to Gintama too. I hope you enjoyed this chapter.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The flashback that no one asked for.

To be honest, Gintoki thought that he would never be in a serious relationship.

He just didn't see himself together with another person a few years down the line. Not like Kondo who persisted and chased after a person who would accidentally kill him one of these days or Otose whose eyes always seemed to gaze at something in the corner of the room, as if she expected someone to still be there. While he had a massive crush on Ketsuno Ana and the occasional character, lusted over someone or chased after people to the ends of the world, Gintoki never felt the drive to want to be with a specific person.

The bonds that he'd been given the chance to make had been enough. He believed this.

Or so he thought.

"You're lazy, stupid, annoying and such a shitty perm-headed asshole," Hijikata Toshirou, red in the face and probably had too much to drink, told him one night at one of the izakaya they frequented. "But Edo wouldn't be the same without you." The bastard pointed at him. "So, stop shouldering things on your own from now on. If something happens again, if you think it'll be too much for your brats or other people, then at least rely on me." He said in that same candid manner he always did.

Gintoki had been caught off guard by his words that he ended up spilling sake all over himself.

It hadn't been the first time someone had told him that kind of thing. The kids certainly did a lot of times when he turned them away because he didn't want to get them involved. But it had been an entirely different thing to hear from someone like Hijikata who understood where he was coming from.

That had probably been the start of everything.

At that time, he didn't understand why the words of a drunk man would get to him but it did.

After that, it had just been a bit harder to ignore the man.

Whenever he caught sight of him, Gintoki found himself always trying to insert himself in the situation. Sometimes, he would even manage to trick the man into treating him to lunch every now and then. Their drinking nights had slowly transitioned into other get-togethers. Lunches at the old lady's snack house, accompanying the bastard at a random bench in the park during his smoke break, or even walking along the man's patrol route on his way to the pachinko parlor.

It didn't matter if they were bickering or talking about the weather, Gintoki was just there.

On the contrary, it hadn't been an instantaneous thing.

"Danna," Okita turned to him as they had been sharing a bench at that dango stall. "You're getting along better with Hijikata-san, aren't you?" The sadist had remarked from out of nowhere.

At that, Gintoki paused in chewing his dango.

"I guess I do, huh?" He blinked at that, pondering just how true that statement was.

Okita raised an eyebrow at him.

"Well, a lot had happened in the past two years." The captain said, picking up a stick of dango. "If this was two years ago, you two would probably be disgusted at having to spend this much time with each other like you both do these days." He took a bite of his dango, staring at the passersby in front of them.

"If this was two years ago, I would've beaten up that bastard." Gintoki corrected with a snort. "Just what are you getting at, Souichirou-kun?"

Maroon eyes stared at him.

Then Okita smiled. _Oi, you're planning something, aren't you?!_

"It's not so bad, is it?"

He didn't know why but after that conversation, it made Gintoki a bit more conscious of the time spent in Hijikata's company. Even with other people around them, his eyes would inevitably seek out the vice-commander. Or when they were alone, he'd caught himself staring at him. Both moments punctuated by some twisted warmth within him. To be honest, he wouldn't have noticed if Hijikata hadn't met his gaze one too many times and would look back at him in bewilderment.

To be fair, Gintoki was confused too, okay?!

All of it changed one afternoon while he was watching that noontime drama with the teens. Gintoki had been staring blankly as he watched Kazuki-kun trying to get involved in his father's mistress' best friend's life. Granted, this hadn't been the same when Kazuki-kun had been lusting after his father's evil mistress and had to sell their house for handholding privileges. He couldn't put his finger on it but this felt different.

Going to her tea ceremonies, taking the long walk home to see her, and even changing the restaurant he ate at just to be able to spend time with her. What was even stranger was that the young man spent most of the time just watching her—

Wait a minute.

"Isn't he just stalking her at this point?" He remembered blandly commenting, frowning as he laid sideways on the sofa, head held up by a hand.

Oi, was that what had been happening to Gin-san? This must be a joke, right?

Kagura huffed. "We don't see him hiding out in floorboards or closets or observing her every second of the day, yes?" She crossed her arms over her chest as she glared distastefully from across him. "You're surprisingly slow, aren't you, Gin-chan?" She turned her nose up at him.

"What Kagura-chan is saying—" Shinpachi cut in just as Gintoki had sat up to deliver a tirade. "—is that Kazuki-san is in love with Shima-san. Unlike Kondo-san or Sacchan-san, he's not harassing her and just wanted to get closer to her. To be honest, if Kondo-san had just been upfront like this instead of bothering my sister every minute of the day, he might've stood a better chance." He sighed, shaking his head.

"Not like Kazuki stands a chance." Kagura grumbled.

What? _What?!_

"I-In love? What's that? A disease? Some kind of mental illness?" Gintoki felt his face twitching because there was no way—

"Don't be silly, Gin-san." Shinpachi chided as he took a sip of his tea. "Isn't there someone that you find yourself wanting to be part of their life? Someone you can rely on?"

Of course, no one came to mind. Well, maybe—

That question hit a little too close to home so he pointedly didn't answer. Thankfully, Kazuki-kun getting kidnapped suddenly in the middle of the drama stole their attention and Gintoki was forced to quietly contemplate what he'd just learned. These teens were basing it from a drama so that couldn't be it. They had to be wrong. For certain, Kazuki-kun had other motives that was certainly not of the romantic nature.

Because otherwise, that would mean—

**oOo**

"Hijikata-kun!" Gintoki called playfully as he stepped into the vice-commander's room, closing the door behind him.

"What is it?" The man paused from his work and looked up at him with exhausted eyes.

He clicked his tongue in annoyance.

"I brought you lunch," Gintoki sighed as he settled himself firmly by Hijikata's side then carefully shoved the papers to the side. "Or early dinner. I met the gorilla a while ago, you know? He told me that you're working yourself too hard. Or that's what I got from his screams while having the shit kicked out of him by the other gorilla. Do you know what time it is already? Mob-kun said you hadn't eaten anything yet." He placed the plastic bag on the table that held the containers of donburi bowls.

Hijikata looked surprised as his eyes snapped to the clock in the room. It read almost five o'clock in the afternoon.

Then, he turned to Gintoki with face full of amusement.

"You _are_ capable of being sweet." The bastard had grinned at him in a rare moment of good humor.

"Gin-san gets no appreciation here," Gintoki rolled his eyes but a fond grin had curved his lips. "Let's just eat, I bought mayonnaise." He pulled a bottle out of the folds of his yukata, knowing that despite this man's love for the condiment, there had always been the paranoia that his supply in the barracks had been tampered with by the resident sadist.

This hadn't been the first time he'd brought lunch but it was usually around a few minutes before noon. Today, he and the kids had been out on a job to help Otae when a portion of the ceiling had caved in this morning at her cabaret club. Of course, Kondo just had to make a nuisance of himself and had asked Gintoki to persuade the vice-commander to take a break.

To be honest, Gintoki didn't want to say it but the thought that the vice-commander wouldn't shoulder so much workload if the gorilla hadn't been out there horsing around instead had crossed his mind a few times already.

It really annoyed him to no end.

"Oi," He started as he took a bite of his oyakodon. "You should really stop doing things like these. You're going to get sick one of these days and while I'd be happy to play nurse, Gin-san prefers Hijikata-kun virus-free. We don't have any Ill Smith lying around here." He squinted his eyes.

"What the heck is an Ill Smith?" The man stared at him in confusion. "And only idiots catch colds." Hijikata rolled his eyes at him.

"And you're not?" Gintoki raised a skeptical eyebrow and tilted his head to the side when the other tried to smack him.

Blue eyes narrowed at him. Since he didn't want to accidentally hit the bastard and possibly waste the meal that he'd spent his few precious yen on, Gintoki hadn't been able to properly defend his food and could only watch as the other successfully stole a piece of chicken from his plastic bowl. In fact, the vice-commander had the nerve to smirk at him as the meat disappeared into his mouth.

The silver-haired man stared at the bowl of mayonnaise abomination in the other's hand and decided that it wasn't worth it.

"Be thankful that Gin-san is very generous today." He felt the need to warn just in case.

"You always say that when you bring me food. Not like you've been taking any Buf*erin." _Oi, Gin-san's plenty kind already!_ Hijikata remarked as he continued inhaling his gyudon before he paused as his gaze flickered to the remaining paperwork. "Hey, yesterday Mahiro-san told me that some shipment of Shochu had arrived from Kyushu." He said. "He already reserved a bottle for us. It'd be a waste if we don't get to sample it soon." He mentioned while staring at him expectantly.

He didn't try to hide his surprise.

"Are you sure?" His eyes stared pointedly at the pile of documents.

"I've done nothing but stare at papers for ten hours already." The bastard admitted with a grimace. _Figures._

He shrugged. "Well, it's said that Shochu from Kyushu is supposed to be the best." He took a bite of his meal.

Hijikata didn't say anything but reached out a hand to touch his face.

Before he could think of saying anything, the other leaned forward as a pair of warm lips touched the corner of Gintoki's mouth. Just as he was thinking of connecting their lips properly, however, the vice-commander pulled back with a snort.

"You've got rice stuck on your face." Hijikata chuckled as Gintoki gawked at him.

"I-Is this the super sultry side that you've been hiding from me?" He asked in awe.

The vice-commander promptly reddened before trying to punch him—

**oOo**

Gintoki slid the door open and blinked.

However, instead of his expected visitor, he came face to face with a large yellow koala bear-like thing hovering by his doorway. Was this an Amanto customer? Wait, no, scratch that. He could see the familiar end of a dark blue yukata and tabi-clad feet below the thing. It was already bizarre to be confronted with such a thing like this in the afternoon but it was even weirder to know that it was being carried around by this particular guest.

"Could you let us in now?" A rather odd high-pitched voice spoke as a hand waved around the thing's yellow arm around.

Gintoki snorted.

"We don't just let in suspicious creatures into the house—" He was cut off as a hand instantly shot out and jabbed him on the stomach, making him double over. "O-Oi, is this how you treat the master of the house?!" He wheezed as he straightened.

"How long are you going to make me stand outside?" Hijikata spoke from behind the thing.

"Well," He drawled and jumped back when a hand tried to hit him again. "This is trespassing, you know?" He commented casually as the other finally entered.

The vice-commander moved the stuffed toy down in order to glare at him.

"I'm always invited here." The man simply said before he handed the huge ball of fluff to Gintoki in order to remove his slippers by the entrance. "It's my privilege. The same way why no one ought to send you away when you're gallivanting around the barracks." There was no reproach in his tone despite his words.

"Of course, they wouldn't! I'm everyone's aniki there already!" Gintoki then stared at the stuffed animal that he held at arm's length. "I know that we're dating and all but you should know that Gin-san's not into this kind of thing. This isn't Mantama. I'd prefer something like strawberry shortcakes from Ichigo-Hara or a hundred cartons of strawberry milk." He raised an eyebrow as his hand closed around something.

Hijikata snatched the koala bear from him.

"That's because this isn't for you." The man glared before walking past him into the threshold.

Gintoki shook his head as he followed after him.

"Toshi, you're—" Kagura was cut off as the vice-commander set the stuffed animal on her lap. "What's this?" She tilted her head. Or Gintoki assumed that she tilted her head as the large thing seemed to dwarf her seated profile.

"There was a lottery in the supermarket." Hijikata answered as he sat on the sofa across from the teens. "It's one of the consolation prizes." He explained.

"It's so big, though." Shinpachi commented from beside the Yato, eyeing the thing rather wryly. "Are you sure that this is just a consolation?"

"Considering that the grand prizes were appliances or tickets for some tour out of the planet, that thing's rather average." The man told them as Gintoki took his seat beside him, draping an arm on the back of the sofa behind the other.

"What do you think, Kagura?" Gintoki called out because he couldn't see what expression she was making when the thing was in the way.

The Yato hummed. "It's not as cute as Sadaharu, yes?"

Hijikata scowled, flustered. "Oi! If you don't want it then give it back—"

A small pair of arms encircled the thing into a possessive embrace.

"It's mine now so you can't take it back, yes?" The Yato huffed before she leapt without warning towards the vice-commander. "Thanks, Toshi!" She tried to hug the man but ended up almost smothering him with the koala bear.

Hijikata just gave her back an awkward pat.

"Don't be so rough, Kagura-chan." Shinpachi scolded as he stood up and pulled her back to her seat.

"It's fine," Hijikata said as he rubbed the back of his neck. "It's not like we can keep that thing in the barracks since I made sure that it's not allowed."

Gintoki resisted the urge to comment about that. Three days ago, he and the teens had been at the mall to buy some things for their client. He and Kagura managed to ditch Shinpachi with the work for a few minutes. The girl went to an arcade and had tried to win one of the large stuffed animals in a crane game. Simply put, she lost and the glasses had managed to hunt them down before she could go through with simply destroying the machine.

Something that he'd recounted to the man because he'd found the incident hilarious.

Right now, though, Gintoki felt a tidal rush of affection filling him up, warming him down to his fingertips. It was somewhat similar to how he usually felt when Kagura remembered to save food for him or when Shinpachi never forgot to buy his strawberry milk despite his complaints about his sugar levels. Only, this one came with the urge to freeze this moment in time, to keep him here in this moment.

"Not bad," Gintoki murmured under his breath as he grabbed a surprised Hijikata's hand and placed the something he'd managed to rip off earlier. "At least, don't forget to remove the price tag next time." He winked at him.

"I don't know what you're talking about." Hijikata said as they both watched the teens arguing about what to name it—

**oOo**

"What did I say? Only idiots catch colds," Hijikata remarked as he sat beside Gintoki's futon.

"Shut up—" He sneezed loudly.

That had been a few weeks ago already, damn it. He didn't want to be confined to the futon, not when he's feeling like shit. Not only was the sensation bringing back some memories he'd rather not think about but he also hated feeling so weak and helpless. To be honest, he was glad that Hijikata had sent Kagura and Sadaharu to Otae's because he didn't want a repeat of last time where the virus could spread to other people.

Not to mention, Kagura had tried to make some porridge. Last time, she had Shinpachi supervising and helping her. Now, Gintoki was actually wary of what disaster she'd left at the kitchen.

On the other hand—

"You're on duty today, right?" He stared pointedly at the other's uniform.

"Doesn't matter." The vice-commander said as he pressed the soaked cloth on Gintoki's forehead. _You matter_ , the man's presence seemed to say. "You just focus on getting better so you don't worry your kids." He combed a few curls away from his face as he said this.

"Hey, can I kiss you?" Gintoki asked bluntly before coughing.

"You're sick." Hijikata deadpanned.

Gintoki pulled down his facemask as he sat up, the cloth landing on his lap.

"Haven't you heard that one will recover from a cold if you give it to someone else?" He reached out and gripped the man by his shoulders. "So, won't you be a dear Hijikata-kun and relieve Gin-san of this cold? A kiss is the best way to give it, right? I promise I'll take care of you, feed you some mayo with porridge and watch over you diligently." Even though he was asking for permission, he was already leaning in for a kiss.

Before he could claim his prize, though, a hand found its way at the back of his head and pulled him further down and—

Did Hijikata just kiss him on the forehead?

"You can still do that even when I'm not sick." The vice-commander pushed him back to lie down on his futon, combing a hand through his curls.

Gintoki closed his eyes and smiled—

**oOo**

"It seems like you have a winning streak there, Gin-san." Hasegawa commented from beside him, eyeing the basket full of pachinko balls by his feet.

Gintoki smirked. "Maybe Lady Luck finally smiled down at me." He'd been hitting jackpot four times in a row now which meant extra cash. Ah, maybe he'd even treat Hijikata to that fancy restaurant they saw the other day on the television.

"Didn't you say that you have somewhere to be?" The man asked him, cursing under his breath when he'd turned the knob too far and the balls came out faster and overshooting the jackpot hole.

"The movie will start at three. I have time." Gintoki absently answered as he waited for the slot machine to give him another three in a row.

Speaking of which—

His eyes strayed to the clock by the wall to his far left. He still got an hour before he needed to meet him. Just a few more minutes, maybe he could win just a little bit more. Last week, the bastard had asked him to watch a movie with him. It had been about some space detective. Well, asked might be the wrong word as Hijikata had given him a ticket for the premiere and told him that they were going to watch it.

To be honest, he didn't really care for the movie but then he'd remember the slump in Hijikata's shoulders, the way he seemed to be one more blink into losing consciousness and toppling over his lunch, overworked and evidently busy with his job, and still remembering to invite Gintoki to see a movie he looked forward to with him.

"But Gin-san," Hasegawa stopped and turned away from the lightshow of the machine indicating that he'd won a jackpot. "Isn't it almost three already?" His brows furrowed.

"Eh?" Gintoki froze and turned to him slowly before his head snapped to the clock. "Oi, Hasegawa-san, did you forget how to read the damn clock—"

"I think it's broken." The brunet said, scratching his head. "It's been quarter-to-two for an hour now." He hesitantly pointed out.

 _What?_ Did he lose track of the time?

Gintoki gaped.

"Fuck!" He cursed as he hastily abandoned his booth and dashed outside.

Right now, he was running as fast as he could. Why did he let himself be roped into going to pachinko again? Ah, right. He'd been so restless waiting for Hijikata to get off work early that he'd taken to wandering around. He'd ended up bumping into Hasegawa and one thing led to another. But hey! He'd made sure to be at the spot that had the best view of the clock in the parlor and it was obviously a useless effort.

_I'm going to file a complaint about that! Don't they know that not all citizens of Edo want to waste hours in there?!_

Gin-san could still make it for the movie but Hijikata would be mad that he was late after the man had taken the afternoon off just for this. Ugh, he should've just gone straight to the Shinsengumi Headquarters and waited there. The vice-commander had even gotten tickets for that Ultra Cinema, the one with those reclining massage chairs and unlimited popcorn and drinks. And just when he'd boasted about it to Otae, damn it.

It wasn't long before he arrived in front of the theater since the pachinko parlor was not far from there. Even so, Gintoki heaved as his eyes strayed outside the theater with no Hijikata in sight.

Ah, was he inside already—?

His eyes landed on the man in question who was standing by the corner near the ice-cream vendor across the theater.

What made him pause was the woman who had her hand wrapped around the man's elbow.

_Who's that? A leech?_

Hijikata was saying something, his phone out as he typed. Whatever she wanted, the woman persisted as her hand slid up the man's upper arm. The vice-commander remained unaffected as he coolly removed said hand. Then he showed her something on the screen of his phone and pointed somewhere by the next block. The woman reddened before she gave a small bow and hastily retreated to the direction that the man had just pointed at.

For a moment, Gintoki stayed rooted on the spot.

"Hijikata-kun!" He called brightly as he approached, slinging an arm around the man's shoulder. "Were you waiting that long?" His grin felt forced for some reason.

"You're late, asshole." Hijikata frowned at him as he hid his phone within the folds of his yukata. "You were supposed to be here fifteen minutes ago."

"Well, I'm here, aren't I?" came the rather brusque response.

The vice-commander brows furrowed.

"What's up with you?"

"Nothing, it's fine." Gintoki bit the inside of his cheek as he pulled the man to the theater. "Come on, Gin-san's been looking forward to that Ultra Cinema experience." He insisted because no way in hell he was going to admit that he'd been irritated by an unknown female specie being handsy with his man, damn it.

He found that he couldn't even enjoy the movie—

**oOo**

Gintoki raised his hand.

"Yo, Hijikata-kun! I brought dinner?" He spoke aloud, mouth stretched wide into a grin before shaking his head violently. "No, too bland. Hmm, saying something like Gin-san's here for a delivery is practically inviting him to kick me out. Maybe I should go down on my hands and knees?" He paused. "Wait a minute, why do I need to apologize in the first place?! I didn't even do anything wrong!" He insisted as he clutched the plastic bag of takeout ramen.

A day ago, he did _something_.

That, at least, he could admit. So, what had been a little bit of kissing in public? Okay, maybe he'd gone a _little_ too far by groping him but they were dating! And Hijikata never had a problem before when Gintoki kissed him in greeting out in the open. So, he didn't understand what was the issue this time. The vice-commander had been terribly incensed that day that he'd try to strangle him. At that time, he figured that it was merely out of embarrassment. Hijikata had always been cute like that.

After twenty-two hours of getting the cold shoulder, Gintoki could finally concede that perhaps he'd been impulsive.

At present, he was currently outside the gates of the Shinsengumi, pacing and trying to work off some restless energy. Why the hell was he nervous in the first place?

"Ah, maybe I should just come back tomorrow—"

He froze just as he realized that he had an audience. The other officers coming and going had ignored him for the most part. Hell, the sadist had even wished him luck in that backhanded manner of his. That fucking brat enjoyed seeing Gin-san squirm too much. He'd definitely get back at him one of these days.

"What are you doing here?" Hijikata frowned.

"Oh, so now you're speaking to me?" Gintoki crossed his arms over his chest, scrunching his face at him in disgruntlement.

"I can arrest you for loitering outside police property." was the retort. He did not just go there!

"I know that we've been exploring a lot in the bedroom but I don't think Gin-san's up for that kinky roleplay yet." He remarked offhandedly and watched as those cheeks took on a pinkish hue.

"Can you be any more shameless?!" Hijikata gritted out before sighing. "You don't even know why I've been mad, do you?"

He scowled. "How am I supposed to know? You won't even talk to me!" He took a deep breath and inwardly reminded himself that he needed to be calm for this. He'd learned from previous arguments with the man that if he also let his temper get the best of him, it would just escalate things. "Look, I know that you have a reputation to uphold or whatever. If you're really that worried about what other people would say, then _fine_ , I won't do it again."

"It's not that, you stupid perm—"

"Then what is it?" He raised an eyebrow at him.

Hijikata appeared like he wanted to say something before he ended up pursing his lips instead.

"Fine," The man yielded. "Just don't do it again." He said firmly.

Gintoki was supposed to be relieved, he knew. They were talking. No yelling like the other week. But he couldn't shake the feeling that he just missed something.

"Well, I brought dinner for us?" He raised the plastic bag in his right hand—

"Hijikata-san, we managed to find the hideout of—" Robozaki had ran out of the gate, staring at them awkwardly and probably realizing that he'd interrupted something. "I mean, Okita-taichou already assembled a squad with him to apprehend them." He continued, darting an uneasy glance towards the silver-haired man.

Gintoki could feel the hesitation emanating from the man in front of him.

"It's fine." He found the words spilling out of his mouth, feeling like his stomach had turned to ice. "Tomorrow?"

"I-I guess." The man stumbled. "We'll talk tomorrow." Hijikata stepped forward and placed a hand on his shoulder, giving it a squeeze before walking back towards Robozaki who looked anxiously between them.

Damn that mobcop's atrocious timing—

**oOo**

"Anou, Gintoki-sama?" Tama discreetly called on his attention by pulling on his sleeve.

Gintoki paused in the middle of his drink.

"What is it?" He murmured under his breath as he watched the others already enjoying themselves.

It had been a while since he'd last seen Otose's snack house this lively but considering that they'd invited a lot of people over, it was to be expected. Today was Hijikata's birthday and the teens had roped him into arranging a small surprise party for the man. This was also a big break after the raid the Shinsengumi and the national police force had done a few days ago with regards to capturing the remnants of the Seibouists. He knew how much solving that case meant to everyone.

Kagura was in the middle of some absurd competition with Okita that involved empty sake bottles and chopsticks while Shinpachi tried to mediate. The others, like Otae, Kyuubei and Kondo, were watching on curiously as Catherine had made herself the self-proclaimed commentator of the match. While others were in their own booths sharing a few toasts.

The birthday celebrant had excused himself earlier that he was going for some smoke.

Now that he thought about it, that had been a few minutes ago.

"It's best if you just see for yourself." She told him and gestured to the small first aid kit hidden in her sleeve.

His eyes widened.

"You need help with some stray cat?" He wondered aloud, sounding surprised. "Of course, Gin-san would help you. I know a lot about stray cats." He nonchalantly said as he met Otose's eyes where she stood behind the counter. "Hey, old hag. Make sure that everyone's having a good time here, okay? I'm just gonna help Tama with some kitty problems." _Don't let anyone come outside for a bit_.

"Fair enough." Otose gave him a look that told him she wanted details later.

"M-Maybe I can also—" Robozaki tried to pitch in, having been seated next to him, but quailed under Gintoki's gaze.

"I don't need cyborgs who are scared of stray cats." He stated before standing up from his stool. "Let's go, Tama." He led the way outside, trying to even his pace.

"Do you need any help, Gin-san?" Shinpachi asked after him.

"I got this." He waved him off.

Tama then took the lead towards the alleyway just beside Otose's shop. He bit the inside of his cheek as he saw a familiar someone sitting on the ground and leaning against the wall, right sleeve of his yukata flopping against his waist as a hand cradled his now exposed bandaged side. He'd noticed that something had been off earlier. The meaningful glances Okita had been sending in his direction, Robozaki's need to stay close, and even the gorilla's reminders to take it easy.

Gintoki hadn't said anything, if only not to worry the teens and because he'd been waiting for Hijikata to bring it up himself.

Apparently not, it seemed.

"Looks like you found an injured stray kitty, Tama." He remarked blandly as he saw the bandages soaked through with blood.

"Who the hell are you calling a kitty?!" was the gritted out response.

"Bad kitty." Gintoki clicked his tongue at him, ignoring the bewildered if not outright incensed glare directed at him. Whatever.

"Gintoki-sama, let me—" Tama stepped beside him.

"No, it's fine." He gave a humorless smile as he met Hijikata's wary eyes, crouching in front of him. "I'll do it." He held out a hand for the first aid kit and he'd make sure the bastard would feel the pain for trying to keep something like this from Gin-san.

"Gintoki—"

"Let's get this over with." He cut him off decisively—

**oOo**

Before the breakup happened, they had a big fight the week before.

Well, Gintoki had started it. He'd been frustrated because Hijikata had been called about something urgent again during lunch, leaving him in the middle of it. And he'd been in a volatile mood ever since. Maybe he'd been a bit overreacting when he'd complained about the man not being up for some late-night fun. Normally, that kind of thing wouldn't bother him but he'd just been in a really irritable state at that time. Hijikata, exhausted after some bigshot meeting with Nobume and the Prime Minister, had lost his temper with him.

It had been a tense week that followed.

"Gintoki, we need to talk." Hijikata had said upon entering the Yorozuya office.

"Well, great timing." He found himself answering distractedly. "The kids are out of the house. Oh, right, you already knew that. What's there to talk about?" He turned another page of his Jump, trying to focus on Mash and his absurd physical prowess—

The Jump was snatched out of his hands rather unceremoniously.

"We need to _talk_." Hijikata emphasized as he slammed the volume on the desk.

Gintoki gazed back at him impassively.

"Fine, talk. We have a few minutes before I have to record the rerun for Kagura's drama."

"Why do you make her watch that show? We all know that Kimiko—" The vice-commander stopped before groaning in annoyance. _You watch it too, Hijikata-kun._ "Wait, that's not what I wanted to talk about! This has got to stop! You always get frustrated with me for seemingly out of nowhere and suddenly give me a hard time over the smallest things! So, what the hell's the problem?" He started to pace restlessly in front of his desk.

"Right back at you, bastard." Gintoki narrowed his eyes.

"We can't always justify what we're doing like this." Hijikata insisted as he pulled out his carton of cigarettes—

"Oi, I said no smoking in the house, remember?"

"Tsk," The man grimaced but he did put the Mayoboro out of sight. "Now, tell me what's the real problem. This is obviously a trend that's been going on for a while now."

"Those things are already done. It's in the past. Why do we need to bring it up again?" Gintoki thought that it was no longer an issue so what the hell was this?

Hijikata gave him this unreadable look that Gintoki hadn't seen for a while directed at him.

"Why won't you talk to me?" The man asked quietly.

His eyes widened at the question.

"Look—"

"I don't mind if you're physically affectionate in public but there are _limits_." Hijikata suddenly told the fuck out of nowhere. "That time when I got mad at you, you did that while I was talking to a witness. While I'm _in the middle of my job_. Then there was that time when I told you there are times that I don't like drinking in crowded places, it's because I end up drinking more than I plan to and wake up with a migraine the next morning. On a work day."

Gintoki frowned at the words, recalling each fight they had.

Before he could say anything, the vice-commander continued determinedly.

"When the Yorozuya assisted us during that operation with those gangs, you took a hit for me. Something we both know I could've perfectly avoided." The man clenched his fists, staring back at him unwaveringly. "And you didn't tell anyone that the injury you got was worse than it looked. Kagura was pissed _at me_."

"You did that too during your birthday." He pointed out irritably, not liking the tone of conversation.

This was why he didn't like talking about it. Gin-san had never been a fan of the blame game.

"I know and I was wrong, okay?" Hijikata sighed as he combed both hands through his hair again. "I let those things slide because I always thought that we'll eventually have a proper discussion about them but you always act like nothing happened the next time and avoid it." The man seemed like he would pace again but he settled for sitting on the sofa instead. "Then I realized we also never got to talk about your issues with me."

"It's fine—"

"You _always_ fucking say that!" Hijikata gritted out, glaring. "And I'm so sick of hearing it! Nothing gets resolved, you hear me? Because you never tell me anything!"

"What do you want me to say then?!" Gintoki snarled defensively as he jumped to his feet. "That your job consumes so much of your fucking time? That it always annoys me that you shoulder all that responsibility on your own? What are the gorilla and sadist for, huh? Are they just accessories?"

Blue eyes widened.

"You never had a problem with it before—"

"That's _before_ we started dating, dumbass!" The silver haired man couldn't stop, feeling the frustrations suddenly pouring out. "And the tip given by that 'witness'? It was a false alarm, remember? Because she just wanted an excuse to talk to you! And you're one to talk when you also never say anything!"

"That's why I'm telling you we need to talk about it now. And you can't just always bribe me with dinner and mayonnaise!" The man reasoned, standing up and stalking towards him.

"It works, doesn't it?" Gintoki rolled his eyes as he walked past the man towards the TV.

A hand landed on his shoulder but he roughly shook it off.

"I think we're done here. The drama's going to start in five minutes." Gintoki just wanted for this conversation to end, feeling his aggravation for those things spilling over and he didn't want to be with Hijikata when it did.

"So, that's it?" Hijikata's expression was more closed off than he remembered ever seeing.

Gintoki was infuriated enough to say it.

"Yeah, that's it."

Hijikata looked like he was itching to punch him. Well, maybe it would be a good way to let their frustrations loose—

The man growled. "Fine! I don't care! We're done! Don't talk to me ever again, asshole!"

" _Fine!_ Who wants to talk to you anyway?!"

_Oi, oi, make up your mind, damn it—_

**oOo**

"Now today will be a lucky day for Libras, especially if you're a brokenhearted samurai with no job," Ketsuno Ana chirped that late morning. "You should avoid going to the pachinko and meeting suspicious people with long hair. Always remember that your lucky number is 15 and lucky color, as always, is blue. Also, today is a quiet day, a perfect time to contemplate about your life choices—"

He was left staring at the dark screen.

Before he was fully conscious of what he was doing, his hand had already reached for the remote and he'd turned the damn television off. It didn't matter if it had been Ketsuno Ana with her adorable serene smile because her words were not appreciated this early in the morning. Noon. Whatever. Still, he hadn't been fast enough considering the heavy weight of judgmental stares directed towards him.

Also, what the hell! _That was way too specific!_

So, without further ado, he proceeded to chew on his rice. Huh, it had been a while since they had only this for breakfast. They'd even ran out of eggs, no wonder Kagura had been so grumpy lately. Maybe it was time to look for a job again even just to add some pickled radishes to their meals. Maybe he could ask Mutsu if she was willing to send a bag full of it. Tempting. But associating with her had the disastrous effect of hearing from Sakamoto which he totally didn't need right now.

"Gin-san," came Shinpachi's deceptively calm voice, glasses glinting rather ominously. "It's been almost a week." He said, sounding like a calm before the storm.

"I know, right?" Gintoki nodded absentmindedly, still chewing on his rice. "Our last job was a week ago. We should look for one before we end up eating Sadaharu's dog food for—" He paused as he saw Sadaharu looking ready to chomp on his head from behind Kagura.

That didn't come out right—

"That's because you blew the money off on pachinko again!" Kagura scowled at him, aggressively filling her mouth with rice and chewing petulantly.

"When will you learn to stop gambling our money?!" Shinpachi backed her statement with exasperation. "Besides, you're only going to make things worse for you if keep going like that—"

"Hey, _nothing_ happened—"

"And nothing is going to happen if you continue running away—"

"Hah? Who's running away? I'll have you know that Gin-san has a lot of things to do—"

Both males shut up when Kagura shoved their bowls of rice straight to their faces, apparently having lost her patience with their argument. Though, it wasn't fair when she ignored Shinpachi in favor of glaring at Gintoki whose face was full of sticky grains as the bowls slid off of them.

"Gin-chan," Her voice vibrated with all the suppressed violence poured into his name. "It's almost a week. That's enough time to fix your mess! I'm tired of your moping. Shinpachi is tired of your moping. Even Sadaharu is tired of your moping!" She slammed a hand on the table to make her point while Sadaharu gave a yip of agreement and Gintoki knew, no, he _felt_ that the large dog was judging him as well.

"H-Hey, what's this about? Ganging up on Gin-san like this," His hand twitched, itching to bury his face in his rice bowl again to hide.

"Gin-san," Shinpachi sighed. "Are you fine just leaving things like this?"

"It was your fault to begin with anyway," Kagura pointed out bluntly. "You kicked out Toshi." The accusation in her eyes made him want to rip out his silver curls.

"So what? He doesn't even live here!" He protested.

"No, it's the same thing!" Kagura argued hotly as she slammed her hand again on the table. "And don't even try to deny it! Ever since you two got together, he's been coming here lots and polluting the air here with his nicotine addiction and mayonnaise smell! Now, the apartment only smells like your stinky feet again!" She complained loudly as she crossed her arms.

"I thought you hated it when it smells like tobacco and mayo in here?" Gintoki bit out in irritation, crossing his arms as well.

"Hijikata-san stopped smoking in here ages ago!" Shinpachi cut in tiredly, obviously done with the man's shit. "He always went outside when he needed to! And you were the one who stock up on all that mayonnaise in the fridge for him. Really, Gin-san, this has gone on long enough. You've been together for six months. Why are you both still like this?"

Fine. He had enough. The pachinko was calling out his name out there anyway.

With that, he abruptly stood up and grabbed his bokutō, thankfully already dressed as he shoved his 'stinky' feet into his boots and ignored the outrage of the other two behind him. Their meddling grated on his nerves, truly. It wasn't until he'd jumped down the flight of stairs and saw a few kids laughing at him that he realized that he still had rice stuck to his face courtesy of Kagura shoving his lunch on his face. _Ugh_ —

**oOo**

That night, he went out drinking.

The bar and his companion for the night could use an improvement because Gin-san did not sign up for some counseling, damn it.

"This fight is probably about something stupid," Otose remarked as she watched him pour sake into his cup. "And you're just too stubborn to make things right." She huffed as she blew smoke into the air.

"He's the one who broke things off so why the hell should I be the one to fix things?!" He slammed the cup on the counter once he'd knocked back the drink.

"Did you fight him for it?" No answer. "Figures. This is something _both_ of you idiotically agreed on. I didn't exactly hear the words but I can hear all the yelling from downstairs. It sounded like your other fights but what made this one so different? That he'd be frustrated enough to end it? While it might've been impulsive on his part, there's got to be something why he'd feel that it's going nowhere." She pointed out matter-of-factly.

"It was only a matter of time, I guess?" He ignored the sharp look she gave him. "I mean, we were great friends. Maybe we're just not cut out for it." He murmured, avoiding her gaze.

"Don't give me that excuse." The old hag countered staunchly. "Have you properly talked about it?"

"Why the hell does it always go back to that?" Gintoki bit his tongue as soon as the question was out of his mouth. "Whenever we had disagreements, we never really had to talk about it before and we did fine." He complained because that was how it had been, right?

Otose gave a long-suffering sigh.

_Oi, what's with that?!_

"Obviously, that friendship isn't automatically going to translate into your relationship. Some things are going to change." She shook her head at him, as if this was something he should've already known.

Give him a break! It wasn't like he'd been in a relationship before, damn it!

"She's right, Gintoki." said the unwanted companion of the night. "Every relationship depends on your communication with your partner. You can't always do what you usually do and let matters settle by itself. Even between friends, that also applies. Look where it got us, for example." Katsura Kotoraou offered to the discussion, taking a languid sip of his sake right beside Gintoki.

"Who invited you here?" He scowled at him.

"See there? You're deflecting again." Katsura clicked his tongue at him but he was right. "I've always thought that it's a good thing that you've finally found someone you wanted to be with. It always bothered me that you seemed to shoulder things by yourself every time. So, I felt relieved when it seemed like you have someone you can rely on. The last time I've seen you that happy was when sensei was still alive." Something in his expression softened, something that Gintoki couldn't stomach to look at.

"What are you afraid of?" Otose asked him. "You don't have to tell me since I'm not the one who needs to hear it."

"What's up with you two teaming up on Gin-san too?!" He demanded incredulously. "He says he doesn't want to talk to me, so quit it." He gritted his teeth.

Why was everyone out to get him?! He couldn't even get drunk in peace!

Katsura opened his mouth to go on another tirade—

**oOo**

Well, Gintoki _did_ try talking to Hijikata. Only, it ended up with them snarling insults at each other brimming with hostility. He could see that the vice-commander was still furious with him which was fine because he kind of felt the same. After all that outburst about him not opening up, the bastard was now the unforthcoming one. Right now, it was easier to be angry than to admit that he'd fucked things up.

It was aggravating.

"You're not here to beg me to get back with your boss again, are you?" Gintoki squinted suspiciously at Robozaki who was occupying the bench next to his at the dango shop.

"W-What?" The cyborg, currently garbed as Jimmy, stared at him nervously. "I'm not here for that danna!"

Because if he met another officer from Shinsengumi prostrating their selves before him and begging him to get back with Hijikata, Gintoki would seriously toss them back directly to the vice-commander's feet if he had to. He couldn't even take a shit in peace when they swarmed the public restroom one time! Not to mention, that baby-faced asshole even threatened to hide the toilet paper from him.

"Make sure it stays that way." Gintoki took a bite of his dango. "I bet that bastard's enjoying all the work again, huh?" He snorted.

"Don't speak like that about Hijikata-san, danna." Robozaki scolded, his apprehension disappearing. "If you really want to know, though, I can give you a weekly report on how he's doing." He offered rather graciously.

"HA?!" Gintoki rounded on him dubiously. "Who'd want to know anything about him?!" was what he said but—

The following week, there was a knock on his door. Shinpachi had been the one to answer it since he and Kagura were too busy finding out who had been the mastermind behind Kazuki's kidnapping. Naturally, Gintoki didn't think too much about it until the glasses brought out an envelope, telling him that Robozaki had left it for him, something about a report. Gintoki waited until the teen handed it to him before standing up to head for the toilet.

"What's that, Gin-chan?" Kagura asked curiously.

"It's trash," He answered. "And I'm going to flush it down the toilet."

"Gin-san! You didn't even see what it was! That could be impor—"

He locked the door behind him.

It wasn't like he wanted to know anything but he was curious, damn it. So, he decided to just get it over with.

It read, _I've made a discovery this week, danna!_ This was the introductory line for his future headaches.

_The weather was very humid last week! The "beginning of the rainy season" is declared from the weather up until that time and the one-week forecast to see how many rainy and cloudy days there are. The "end of the rainy season" is announced when the rainy season front moves away from Edo and changes to summer weather. Hot and humid weather specific to the rainy season mainly occurs in June and July, so you can expect a fair amount of rain._

_Thankfully, it's not an everyday occurrence. You can also anticipate consistently gray, overcast skies and the occasional bout of intense wind._

_We must prepare for the many discomforts that the rainy season will throw our way:_

_Step 1: Gear up! – the vice-commander had issued for all officers to bring an umbrella during patrols and wear the standard rain boots. He'd included this in his daily check in the mornings and assigned punishment to those who forgot it. Unfortunately, someone pointed out that the boots resembled the Yorozuya danna's so we all had to deal with drenched feet last Wednesday._

_Step 2: Prepare your defenses! – the air conditioning unit are working fine in the barracks but the vice-commander told us to survive on our own without it. If China-san and Shinpachi-kun could survive it then so can we. Thankfully, the humidity hadn't been any worse._

_Step 3: Plan accordingly! – the vice-commander is really meticulous! He already adjusted the patrol routes in case of downpour. However, he's been delegating a lot of the actual work to the captains this time._

_The vice-commander really dislikes rainy season. If you can visit—_

"What's with this report, huh?!" Gintoki crumpled the paper and threw it down the toilet. "Is that cyborg mocking me?!"

What the hell did he just read—

**oOo**

At present, Gintoki picked up EDO Plus Issue No. 150 again and maybe—

.

.

.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the late update, some things came up IRL and I got little window to finish this chapter. I wanted to finish this fic next week due to other stuff I need to work on.
> 
> I was actually listening to another Gintama ED when writing this. _**This World is Yours** by plingmin_.
> 
> Notes:  
> *Someone told me that they thought the reason they broke up was due to something silly. In hindsight, when you look at it, I guess, it can be? The misunderstandings that piled up and the lack of proper communication. Then we just have two stubborn people. But in fact, this can be a serious issue.  
> *Some things here were what that someone I based this story on faced.  
> *The weather trivia about rainy season was actually from livejapan. Just had fun with the Yamazaki's essays.
> 
> Thank you for your support of this story! Please look forward to the last chapter next week!


	5. Chapter 5

"Yo!" He raised a hand in greeting.

Jimmy One stared at him in shock.

"Danna!" He called out loudly before staring at his shoulder nervously. "A-Ah, I mean, it's been a while since you came here, danna." The man chuckled uneasily.

"Is your boss in?" Gintoki asked as he gestured to the plastic bag in his other hand.

It was a few minutes past twelve and he figured that he was just in time for their lunchbreak. But knowing a certain someone, he'd be back at his room and filling up paperwork like usual. Still, it _had_ been a while since he'd been here but it felt like just yesterday when he'd barge in without care and no one would bat an eye at his entrance. Though, Gin-san just had to be certain because he could never know with these guys.

The officer's eyes brightened. "Hijikata-san should be in his room." _Of course_.

Gintoki waved as he sauntered past the gates to the courtyard.

"Well, don't mind me, Jimmy One."

"I-It's Isaragi?" came the despairing whisper behind him.

Since Gintoki wasn't sneaking around, other officers also expressed their surprise in seeing him at their headquarters. Some pointedly did not mention why he could possibly be there. One of the new faces had tried to ask but the others immediately silenced him.

Ah, poor soul.

He didn't see the gorilla or sadist around but Jimmy Four informed him that they were in the cafeteria.

To his surprise, a certain someone wasn't in his room doing paperwork.

Instead, Hijikata was seated by the _engawa_ , smoking quietly outside. Gintoki paused and stared. It had been a while since he'd seen the man that casual without his coat and cravat on. It almost seemed like the vice-commander was relaxing. It was a sight that he almost didn't want to intrude on but he knew that that would just be an excuse to further prolong this. Not after Gin-san had given himself the pep talk of the century to even go this far.

"How long are you going to stand there?" Hijikata's voice made him freeze.

"I-I wasn't watching or admiring or anything!" Gintoki lamely denied as he stepped out of the corner. "Well, it's rare that you're on an actual break this time, though." He pointed out as he sat beside the man, placing the plastic bag between them.

The man hummed.

"I've thought a lot about it," Hijikata said, still not looking at him as he exhaled smoke into the air. "Having more time in my hands now doesn't sound too bad."

Gintoki stared at the man in wonder.

"So, what happened to that Kame-something?" He asked because that had been the last time that he'd seen Hijikata.

"Kameroboko are supposed to be endangered species in space." The man said, taking a long drag of smoke and breathing out heavily. "So, keeping them is actually against some sort of rule. Prince Hata is going to face charges unless he returns it from where it rightfully belongs. From what I hear, Shijaku is the one trying to smooth things out. I don't know why we couldn't just put that stupid prince in jail. His pet had placed our Prime Minister in danger." He clicked his tongue in obvious annoyance.

"Careful there, others might think you have a grudge against him." He mused.

"Well, I might actually have." was the rather nonchalant response. "But whose fault was it that things got worse back there?" He glared at him from the corner of his eyes.

"Oi! You were scared too! You were practically clinging to Gin-san!"

"Like hell I was, you stupid perm!"

Gintoki snorted.

"I assumed that I wouldn't be welcomed here anymore." He changed the subject as he leaned back on his hands. "But I guess I've got to thank you for that, huh?" He stretched his legs out in front of him, finding the atmosphere oddly peaceful.

"I didn't do anything—"

"I'm not stupid." Gintoki cut him off with a scoff. "It's because you've been lashing out at your poor subordinates. Probably terrified them into not bringing up my existence in front of you. That way, they wouldn't team up and hunt me down for breaking their vice-commander's heart, right?" He did not mention that those subordinates had been properly intimidated that they would resort to begging him to get back with their boss instead.

It was the least he could do after they stuck to their word about ceasing their meddlesome ways.

"You're so full of yourself." The vice-commander bit his cigarette, teeth clenched as he turned away from him.

"This situation works better for me though." Gintoki declared as he jumped to his feet, stretching out his arms above him.

Hijikata's head snapped to him, eyes widening.

"What?"

"I brought you lunch." He told him as he gestured to the plastic bag of takeout salmon daikon. "That's why Gin-san actually dropped by. So, enjoy your meal, Hijikata-kun!" He waved as he marched back through the hallways, leaving the man in a stupor.

That went better than expected.

**oOo**

The first time Gintoki had met Hijikata Toshirou, the bastard had tried to take his head off back at an embassy. Granted, it was his fault for consorting with Katsura like that. Not that he'd planned so in the first place.

His first impression of him had been an arrogant bastard who'd been too eager for a fight. Those blue eyes had been gleaming bright with challenge, asking for any excuse to cut him down. Back then, Gintoki hadn't taken him seriously because while he hadn't been actively opposing the bakufu like Katsura or Takasugi, he also hadn't been their fan either. So, people involved with the bakufu tended to sometimes become blurred to him, background characters that he never gave a second glance.

Then he realized how grossly mistaken he was.

"He may be a gorilla but, to us, he's our precious commander." Hijikata had declared the next time they met, glaring down at him fiercely. "He's my oldest comrade and we built the Shinsengumi together. I won't let you beat the Shinsengumi."

At that time, what came to mind were three idiots in a war who weren't fighting for the country but for a man who'd changed their lives.

Because _that_ , Gintoki could understand.

While his overall opinion hadn't changed, something about how he saw this man had still shifted.

And it continued that way throughout the years. Even then—

"What are you doing?"

Gintoki jumped and frantically tried to hide the copy of EDO Plus Issue No. 150 that Katsura had given him but it was already too late as he met Shinpachi's eyes from where the teen stood by the doorway. Sighing in resignation, he let the magazine flop uselessly on top of his desk. It wasn't like he could hide it forever, he just preferred that this little tidbit wouldn't get back to several someone.

"Oi, I thought that you're going to help out your sister with her students today?" He crossed his arms over his chest.

"We actually finished early." Shinpachi answered as he stepped into the office. "Where's Kagura-chan?" The teen asked him, looking around the place devoid of said girl and their large white dog.

"She took Sadaharu out for a walk." Gintoki replied.

Maybe if he ignored the magazine, the glasses would forget about its existence—

"So, is there a reason why you're reading EDO Plus?" Shinpachi stared at him through narrowed eyes, expressing his suspicion as he sat down on the sofa. "Don't tell me that this is what you've been doing these days when you're left alone in this place." Those glasses glinted with judgment.

"Gin-san can read whatever he wants!" He insisted rather defensively. "And this isn't just any issue, this is _Issue No. 150_! So, leave me alone, damn it!"

Shinpachi's eyes widened, probably having recognized it from Otae.

"That means—" He seemed more surprised than appalled so Gin-san counted that as a win.

"I just—" Gintoki sighed again, gesturing rather helplessly at the magazine.

"Gin-san, can I ask a question?" When the man nodded, he continued almost cautiously. "If you're still in love with Hijikata-san then why don't you just get back together with him? It's clear that he still feels the same for you." Huh, this was the first time the teen had directly addressed it.

This was something that a lot of people had been pointing out, that Gintoki had refused to see.

For a moment, he recalled that incident back at the storehouse a few days ago. The way Hijikata had willingly sat next to him, words devoid of the usual contempt that had marked the end of their relationship. It had been so easy to go back to their old ways. Then he would remember that instant, that one brief second when he finally admitted to himself that this wasn't how he wanted things to go between them.

He bit the inside of his cheek.

"You really think so?"

Something in Shinpachi's gaze softened.

"As long as you two want to make things work, then yes." The glasses readily answered, not a single shred of doubt that Gintoki could almost admire. "I don't believe in perfect relationships anyway." The teen shook his head with a small smile.

Gintoki smiled. "Huh. For someone who never had a real-life girlfriend, you sure sound like you know what you're talking about."

Shinpachi promptly reddened in mortification.

"Shut up!" The teen had yelled at him.

So—

On the second time, he brought soba.

On the third time, he got some katsudon and—

"Instead of just leaving abruptly," The vice-commander spoke before Gintoki could make his grand exit. "Why don't you actually stick around this time and eat with me?" Hijikata's voice was brimming with challenge.

Not that Gintoki was trying to escape in the first place.

"I thought you'd never ask." He grinned before joining the man.

**oOo**

"Toshi can be difficult sometimes," Kondo said as he poured him a drink one evening at a bar. "If only because he always has a hard time being true to himself." The man shook his head as he gulped down his drink. "And this time's no different. But I guess you already knew that."

"Are you sure that you should be talking about these things?" Gintoki asked nonchalantly, raising an eyebrow. "I don't think that's something he'd want you just telling me." He murmured.

"Of course, now that you're willing to listen, shouldn't you hear about this?" The grin that Kondo gave him was a little bit sharp around the edges.

Huh, so gorillas could make that kind of expression too.

"Don't you think it's too late for this version of shovel talk?" He returned the look with a smirk, propping his chin with a hand.

Kondo laughed uproariously.

"You're funny, Yorozuya." The commander declared as he poured himself a drink. "No, I think someone would be more suited to that role. But Toshi is a dear friend of mine so I just want him to be happy. The Shinsengumi had been that place for him. But I've seen him actually be happier this time, even if it was with a guy like you. I think it's the same for you, right? That's why those kids and your friends wanted to help you." He patted Gintoki on the back rather roughly.

_Oi, what do you mean 'with a guy like you'?!_

"You're being awfully nice to the guy who was dumped by your dear friend." Gintoki huffed as he shook him off.

"Everyone makes mistakes and sometimes, they also make bad choices." Kondo reached out and refilled the silver-haired man's cup. "It's the same with you and Toshi but I don't think that it's too late for you two." He rubbed his back this time.

"Oi! Get off, gorilla! Gin-san doesn't know where those hands had been!"

Everyone kept saying the same thing. Gintoki wanted to believe them. It was just the fact that he had a hard time building up the same confidence they seemingly had for him. It was so easy to spout off those things. Hell, he could even offer the same advice if he encountered those clients in the same boat as he was. To be honest, it surprised him that Hijikata was oddly receptive to his little advances these past few days.

No, more than that, the man had actually been responding in kind.

Like today on the man's day off, Hijikata had asked the teens to bring him along for their lunch excursion. Not that Gin-san could refuse free food.

"Toshi!" Kagura greeted loudly as she tried to hook her arm around the man's neck for their customary greeting.

However, Hijikata stepped back from her surprise attack and proceeded to lock his arm around her neck this time, digging his fist onto her head. Gintoki blinked as he gazed at the grin that bloomed on the man's face.

Was this what he'd missed out on?

"You've got some nerve, you brat." Hijikata's eyes narrowed. "Have you properly repented for what you've done?" He demanded as he grinded his fist fiercely.

"That was all on Gin-chan, yes?" The Yato pointed in his direction rather accusingly.

Gintoki scowled.

"Oi, if I remember correctly, Gin-san was also a victim there!" He approached and pulled on her cheeks, ignoring her squawk as the vice-commander released her. "And there wasn't any dessert left for me! I didn't even get a taste from that chocolate fountain. All because you're more obsessed about Kazuki-kun's complicated life!" He gave her one last pinch before jumping back to hide behind Shinpachi when she tried to grab him in retaliation.

"Can't you guys behave yourselves?" Shinpachi sighed as he strode towards them despite Gintoki's efforts to pull him back.

Before Kagura could give chase, Hijikata grabbed her by the shoulders and pushed her inside the establishment.

"Let's just eat already." The man was saying as he and Shinpachi followed after them.

It didn't take long before they were all seated at a table by the windows. This time, Gintoki didn't try to fight it when Kagura pushed him on the seat right beside the vice-commander. Besides, he came here of his own volition so trying to protest about it would only contradict why he was here in the first place. It didn't take long before their orders were taken and Gintoki settled for some grilled chicken and a parfait.

"So, what do you usually do here?" Gintoki directed the question towards Hijikata.

"Where the hell did that stupid question come from?" The bastard deadpanned.

Gintoki blinked. Then turned to the teens who were giving him suspicious glances. What? It was a valid question, okay?! While these three, sometimes four with Sadaharu, were out here playing some kind of club by themselves, Gin-san was obviously a new member!

"It's not like this is the first time we went out like this, Gin-san." Shinpachi pointed out in confusion.

"Yeah," Kagura chimed in, crossing her arms over her chest. "It's not like we go out because we have something to do. We're here because we want to spend time with each other, yes? Isn't that why you came?" She raised an eyebrow at him. _Because you wanted to spend time with Toshi too?_ Her eyes seemed to say.

Ah, of course.

What the hell had he been thinking just now?

Aside from that disaster at the restaurant, the last time they had gone out was just more than a month ago or something.

"Well," Gintoki said as he grabbed the menu again. "If that's the case, then I'll just do the usual since Hijikata-kun's paying." He grinned at the man whose eye had started twitching. "Don't mind if I do." He blinked when the binder was slammed down on the table.

"Any more than three orders of dessert will be out of your own wallet." Hijikata warned but, despite it all, he didn't look that irritated.

"So stingy as always." He raised his hands in surrender.

"Ah!" The Yato suddenly perked up, thumping her fist onto her palm. "Gin-chan, I was just telling Toshi last time about how you've gotten home drunk one morning and wouldn't stop singing that theme song from that movie—" She had no compunctions about bringing it up.

"It never happened!" Gintoki cut in loudly, slamming his hands on the table.

_Oi, you swore after I bought you ten boxes of sukonbu, five bowls of ramen and one plate of that spicy super deluxe chicken tonkatsu with shiitake fried rice that you saw nothing!_

"Because you thought a ghost followed you home, right?" Hijikata smirked, obviously amused.

"I was drunk! Give me a break!" He denied vehemently. "And don't you know that music is the new exorcism these days?! Yuurei-kun was probably put to rest quicker because of it! I've sent ghosts to heaven by singing 'A Thousand Winds' before!" He glared at the utterly unapologetic girl in front of him.

"That was the day you skived off work, right?" Shinpachi quipped dryly.

Damn it, he was clearly being bullied here so why the hell was he enjoying this?

**oOo**

He told himself that it would be a while before Gintoki went to anywhere with Sakamoto again.

Apparently, that meant it would be soon.

"Zura and I made a bet, you know?" The idiot laughed as they sat at a booth inside Otae's cabaret club.

Thankfully, said female gorilla was too busy with her other customers at the moment. At least this time, Gintoki could be rest assured for the time being that nothing diabolic was brewing here without his knowledge. That Truth or Death game would probably stick with him for months to come. Also, Mutsu had thoroughly searched the moron before leaving them so he didn't have to worry about Sakamoto suddenly flaunting Amanto merchandise to test out.

"It's not Zura, it's Katsura!" The other idiot interjected while Elizabeth threw tempura into his beak-like mouth beside him. "But I guess I should give you my thanks for reminding me. If I remember correctly, it means that I've won the bet then?" He seemed utterly smug about it.

"Well, it wasn't about winning in the first place." Sakamoto shrugged. "It's not like 540 yen is a big deal." He waved off with a chortle.

"Do I even want to know?" Gintoki grumbled as he poured sake into his cup.

Katsura frowned.

"Maybe you should." The wig said, throwing him a sharp glance. "After all, it's about you." He revealed matter-of-factly.

"What?"

"Since I discovered that you and Toshi broke up, Zura and I got to discussing about it." The brunet grinned as he crossed his arms over his chest. "I figured that if you two ever got back together, it would be Toshi who would try to fix things. After all, he's the straightforward kind of guy and he strikes me as the more mature one in your relationship. Zura said that it would be you who would do it after you realize the advantages of dating someone from the police with a stable income while crying for him to take you back."

_What kind of person do you think I am when in a relationship?!_

"It's not Zura, its—"

"Oi! What the hell are you two idiots even doing?!" He demanded incredulously before rounding on Katsura. "Just what the hell do you take me for? For that matter, how can you even tell that you won the bet? No one's gotten back together yet." Gintoki bit his tongue, realizing his mistake.

"You forget that I now work closely with the Shinsengumi." Katsura stared at him disapprovingly. "After I gave you that magazine to get your affairs in order, you mean to say that you and Hijikata are still separated? That's not what Kondo's been telling me recently, though."

_Just how many people are gossiping about us?!_

"Magazine?" Sakamoto tilted his head. "Zura, isn't that cheating?" He sounded confused.

"Nonsense." The long-haired samurai waved off. "I thought that it wasn't about winning in the first place? Isn't that right, Elizabeth?" He turned to his companion expectantly.

 _It's none of my business_ , was the distracted response as the other set about ordering another plate of tempura.

"Besides, how can you be so sure that we'd get back together anyway?" Gintoki asked wryly.

The two idiots stared at each other before laughing.

His eye twitched. These two were seriously getting on his nerves.

"That's simple," Sakamoto answered as their laughter died down. "It's because we know you, Kintoki." He didn't elaborate on it but since Katsura didn't offer any objection, that meant that he completely agreed with those words.

"Then why 540 yen? Isn't that wager way too cheap?" Gintoki decided to focus on another matter.

Katsura smiled somewhat nostalgically.

"That's simple too." He said. "Because you can buy a five-pack Yakulk for 540 yen."

**oOo**

"Today is a brand new day for Libras, especially if you're a perm-headed samurai with high sugar levels!" Ketsuno Ana chirped that late morning. "You should avoid going out of the house for the day and take a moment to relax. Always remember that your lucky number is 15 and lucky color, as always, is blue. This is a good opportunity to clear up misunderstandings and spend time with people you—"

Gin-san was just listening to his horoscope.

Since they were weirdly too specific for some reason, he figured that he might as well try his luck for the day. That was the only reason why he sent Kagura and Sadaharu to spend the night at the Shimura dojo. It had absolutely nothing to do why he was pacing inside his own office and counting down the hours. He had already caught up with Mash-kun and his misadventures in that magical school.

Also, he didn't want to see any traces of EDO Plus right now. There had been a few uncomfortable questions that he had been forced to contemplate on.

When the time finally came that evening—

"Let's talk." were Gintoki's first words once they had settled down, sitting across from each other on the sofa.

Hijikata didn't answer, just eyed him evenly.

Earlier in his head, he imagined a scenario where the bastard would say 'finally!' in that exasperated way of his in response to his words and he was honestly bracing for it. Hell, he would even sit still if Hijikata decided to roll his eyes at him the way he always did when he thought that Gintoki was being particularly stupid. He would accept an angry tirade if it really came down to it because this nonresponse was seriously making Gin-san nervous.

This was the first time he'd finally addressed the issue that had stayed unvoiced between them ever since that fight.

_Come on, say something already—_

"Are you ready to talk?"

Gintoki stared at him in surprise.

The vice-commander avoided his gaze with a sigh.

"It's just that I realized that I never really asked." He explained as he rubbed the back of his head, signs that showed his discomfort. "I shouldn't have forced it that way." He told him, something almost apologetic in his tone.

"I guess it was my fault to begin with—" Gintoki tried to put in, realizing that this wasn't how he'd envisioned their conversation at all.

_Oi, where is this suddenly coming from?_

"I'm not completely unaware. I've always sensed that there are things you're not telling me." Hijikata admitted with a click of his tongue, cutting him off. "A lot of times, I never pushed because I've always waited for you to say it yourself. I guess that one was on me. I never should've let it go on like it did back then. And that day, I just got a little…impatient. That's all."

"Then why did you break things off?" The silver-haired man finally asked the question that had never stopped bothering him.

"Can I smoke here?"

"Really? That's your answer?"

"You—"

"Fine," Gintoki relented with a sigh. "Just for tonight."

He had expected something like that in the first place and that was why there was an ashtray on the table.

This time, Hijikata met his eyes.

"When you told me face to face that you have no intention of telling me what the problem was, I thought at that moment that in those six months that we've been together, you never found it in yourself to depend on me." The vice-commander smiled a little helplessly as he pulled out a cigarette stick.

Those words back at the bar months ago suddenly echoed in his head.

_Then at least rely on me._

Gintoki finally realized that while Hijikata had indeed been angry at him, more than anything, the man had actually been _hurting_.

Damn it. It wasn't supposed to be this way.

"You could've just come back and told me about it." Gintoki couldn't help muttering.

"Well, what did you expect me to do?" Hijikata scoffed a bit disbelievingly as he brought out his lighter to light up his cancer stick. "I thought you hated me for ending things so quickly like that. So, I never had the courage to try and fix it. But then at the cabaret club, you outright admitted that you didn't hate me. Just how ironic could you be?"

At that, he couldn't help but snicker.

Hijikata glared at him. "What the hell's so funny about it, you fucking asshole?"

"It's because I'm an idiot." Gintoki snorted. "You know, all these people around me are telling me to get back with you and they make it sound so easy. If Gin-san was the one telling others about it, yeah, it's easy. I mean, where the hell is that absurd assurance coming from when I'm not even confident about my chances? And the way you're talking right now pisses me off because I realize that they weren't totally wrong." He ranted, groaning in annoyance.

"Does this mean that you're ready to tell me?"

Gintoki rolled his neck once before leaning his elbows on his knees and propping his chin on his intertwined hands.

He steeled his nerves. Hijikata was being exceptionally honest with him right now. The least he could do was return the favor because the man had been right to say that they couldn't ignore the hard part forever. What direction that would lead them to, he didn't know but he would never know if he didn't try.

He was tired of carrying regrets with him. This didn't need to be another one.

"Where should we start?"

"How about why you didn't tell me that my work was upsetting you? You know we could've reached a compromise." The vice-commander pointed out, exhaling smoke in the air.

This bastard wasn't pulling any punches, was he?

He bit the inside of his cheek. "I know how much the Shinsengumi means to you. I've seen it with my own eyes. I can't bring myself to get in the way of that." It was the fucking truth. Before there had been any relationship between them, the Shinsengumi had been Hijikata's way of life.

"Like I told you, if I'd known that sooner, I could've done something—"

This man just wasn't getting it. _Ugh_. "I didn't want you to choose between us, okay?!" Gintoki cut him off, avoiding his gaze and feeling his ears burn.

Maybe he couldn't do this after all.

Gintoki wasn't—

He wasn't Mitsuba. Okita had mentioned the potential romance between these two that hadn't been realized. How Hijikata had chosen the path of the sword, the Shinsengumi, and let go of his chance with Mitsuba to give her the happiness the man thought she deserved. He just hadn't wanted to push Hijikata into making that choice one day. Because whatever it ended up being, Gintoki couldn't bear to know the answer.

And he hated himself for selfishly thinking that way.

Hijikata stood up from across him and marched to sit beside him.

"But that's what you taught me before, remember?" Hijikata told him quietly, almost gently as if he didn't want to spook Gintoki which was ridiculous because he wasn't scared, damn it. "I didn't always have to sacrifice one over the other. That I can still choose to keep both."

Gintoki's eyes widened before he closed them.

Ah, when the bastard said it like that, it made him feel like a major moron now. But the relief felt so fucking sharp that it was like Shinpachi had violently jabbed his bokutō straight towards his solar plexus.

He felt a hand combing through his curls.

"So, what else had been bothering you?"

Something in his chest loosened.

And Gintoki talked.

**oOo**

Gintoki caught the small carton of strawberry yogurt drink thrown with prejudice towards his face.

"That's some aim you got there, Sofa-kun." He remarked casually as he detached the dark bendable straw from the back of the carton and stabbed it through the straw hole. "If I didn't know any better, Gin-san would think you have a grudge against him." He bit the end of the straw as he watched the sadist take a seat on the same bench he was occupying at the park.

"Remember that perfect assassination, danna?" Okita Sougo instead asked him.

"Oi, oi, I already told you that the Yorozuya doesn't take those kinds of job." Gintoki was quick to retort.

_What the hell is this brat's obsession with that?!_

"Take that drink, for instance." The sadist ignored his protest and turned to him with an unreadable gaze. "You just took it without any reservation. Because you think I lack the motive, right?" Okita leaned his head on the backrest of the bench, staring at the sky.

Calmly, very calmly, he put down the carton of strawberry yogurt drink.

His eye started twitching.

"Worried?" Okita smirked. "I didn't do anything. It seems like you finally gave up the pretense, huh? I guess we really should've just locked you both up from the beginning." He paused. "And before you get the wrong idea, Kondo-san begged me since he has zero intimidation factor. I figured that I could just have some fun along the way since tormenting Hijikata-san through you should prove to be entertaining. And he'd let me get away with it if something happened, right?"

 _Ah,_ so that's what it was.

"Be careful, Okita-kun. I'm starting to think that you care." Gintoki snorted.

"Be careful, danna. While I didn't put poison there, it doesn't mean there's nothing else." Okita returned offhandedly.

He gagged, forcing himself to vomit that strawberry yogurt drink from hell—

"Just kidding." Gintoki grinned.

 _Ha!_ Like hell he would trust anything from this sadist. So, this was what the gorilla had meant when he said someone would be suited to that role.

It wasn't difficult to see that the Shinsengumi operated on a different wavelength and couldn't be easily labeled as background characters. Those people wore their hearts on their sleeve, whether they were a stalker gorilla, a demonic mayora, a sadistic brat, a narcoleptic afro, a cyborg, and so on. That was why these lot wouldn't stay quiet when they found out that one of the few precious souls in their organization was involved with someone.

When even Hijikata's dysfunctional family found time to give him their blessings, he figured that he got to start from somewhere.

Maybe, that had been one of the encouragements he needed—

Gintoki blinked in the darkness.

He didn't think that it would take them hours to discuss things. There had been a few arguments along the way but they had made been careful to keep their tempers in check this time. Hell, he hadn't expected it to be so _exhausting_. And that had been the only reason why they were lying down on his futon with Hijikata draped on his side, his arm wrapped around Gintoki's waist instead of having some late-night action that they'd missed out on for these past weeks.

God, he missed this bastard, hadn't he?

"You know, I feel bad for Kazuki-kun." He suddenly blurted, feeling the man shift slightly. "He didn't use to believe in love because his father always had different mistresses and he saw how that broke their family. When he'd finally grown up to be a respectable man because he learned what it meant to fall in love, he just had to discover that the woman he was in love with was his long-lost twin sister. Just how fucked up is that?"

"What the hell are you talking about? Didn't you watch last week's episode?" Hijikata muttered beside him.

"I forgot to record it, remember? That's why Kagura got mad at me." Gintoki pointed out.

He could almost imagine the man rolling his eyes at him.

"Kazuki is adopted. The real twin brother died in childbirth. He was entrusted to Kimiko-san by Matsui-san. That was why the DNA test showed that he's not his father's son." The man casually revealed to him.

_Oi, this drama had grown really absurd!_

Wait, so Gin-san was right that Kazuki's biological father was Kimiko-san's best friend?!

"Ugh, this is why I keep telling that brat to stop watching these things!" He complained loudly in the dark. "Kazuki-kun's life is too complicated! That thing's going to give people trust issues, you know?!" He couldn't even be complacent about new characters because they were definitely going to be involved in something even more outlandish.

"Maybe _you_ should stop watching it if you're this worked up about it." Hijikata remarked blandly.

"I can't help it! I need to know what happens next!"

"Then stop complaining about it!"

"Tsk, rude."

For a moment, it was silent again before Gintoki sighed.

"So, what now?" He asked quietly. "Where do we go from here?" He knew what he wanted but did Hijikata want the same?

"I wouldn't be staying right now if I didn't want things to work out between us." The vice-commander told him bluntly.

"It's going to be that easy?" Gintoki almost didn't want to believe it.

"This isn't a drama, you dumbass. Don't make things unnecessarily complicated." Hijikata scolded and gave him a light slap on the chest to emphasize his point. "Besides, you may think it's easy right now but we both learned that it ain't always gonna be that way." The man mentioned and he had a point.

Since they were on that page—

"We need to set some things straight," Gintoki declared then, suddenly sitting up and staring at Hijikata's profile. "Gin-san read somewhere that it's important to established some kind of boundaries." He didn't mention that he'd been reading EDO Plus Issue No. 150 regardless of how much that thing had cleared things up for him. It was bad enough that Shinpachi knew about that thing. The less people who knew, the better it was.

"Well, why don't you start it, oh wise one?" Hijikata drawled, still laying down.

He had time to think about it.

"Make sure that work doesn't always eat at your time, I've always hated it when you had to leave because of work when you're with me." He crossed his arms over his chest, nodding to himself. "Unless it's life or death, have Sofa-kun or the gorilla deal with it." That sounded reasonable enough, right?

"I—" The vice-commander cleared his throat. "I already gave Yamazaki strict instructions to only call me for life-threatening situations when I'm already off my shift. Otherwise, he can defer to the other captains or Kondo-san. But when there's a big case, expect things to get busy."

Fair enough. Their fight back then had really bothered him, hadn't it?

"When those women tried to get handsy with you, tell them you're in a relationship. Just blow them off. I don't care." This was something that Gintoki had been itching to make known because he wouldn't take that shit lying down! "You don't even realize just how damn attractive you are, do you? It's unfair, you know! I'm always getting annoyed when it happens but you don't even get the slightest bit jealous when it comes to Gin-san!" He accused.

"Are you a kid?" Hijikata demanded as he sat up. "Besides, why do you think Otae talked down Sarutobi when she'd been bothering us those months ago? Because I asked her for a favor!"

Gintoki blinked. Huh, so that had been the reason. Good to know.

"So?"

"It's not like I wanted their attention. Just don't make a scene."

He nodded, satisfied.

"Don't forget to tell me about important things in work too—like that injury. I'll tell you about things like those only if you let me know too. Deal?" Hearing the wary 'fine' was enough for him. He could do this. Gin-san was on a fucking roll. "And… it's the same too, I guess? You also have to tell me when things bother you. Gin-san isn't always an insensitive asshole, you know? I can only understand you to a certain extent and I don't have mind-reading powers."

"It goes both ways." Hijikata's tone brooked no argument.

"I can't make promises right now but I'll try." Gintoki settled for a compromise. "If PDA really bothered you that much, then I'll keep it to be kid-friendly in public."

"That should be a given, you shameless pervert!"

"Oi!" He paused. "If you don't always like drinking out in crowded places sometimes, let's buy alcohol and just drink at my place. Hell, I'll send Kagura to Otae's if it's such a big deal with her around. If I forget about things, then don't nag me about it. My memory's not absolute. If you don't want me to be too overbearing when the Yorozuya assists Shinsengumi in fights, I'll try to lessen it but don't expect that much yet." Because Gintoki's priority had always been to protect.

He could feel Hijikata's stare and it's taking all of Gintoki's nerves to stay rooted where he was. "The relationship isn't just about me. It's about you too. You're important too."

"I know and I'm…sorry." He sighed as he rested his forehead against Hijikata's. "That's why, you were right. We need to talk about these things." He finally admitted.

"I'm sorry, too." was what Hijikata had to say before Gintoki felt a hand holding on to his own reassuringly.

This could work after all, couldn't it?

Gintoki finally gave in to the temptation and leaned in.

It felt like time had stopped when their lips met again for the first time since then. He could only focus on how warm Hijikata felt against his mouth, letting everything about him invade all his senses. A hand came up to slide over the back of Gintoki's head to tilt it and deepen their kiss. This was something that he thought he would never experience with him again but the fact that he did at this moment was enough to nearly silence all the thoughts in his head.

He never thought that giving in could also be so freeing.

**oOo**

"So, you were right," _Again._ Gintoki clicked his tongue in annoyance as he showed them the booklet. "We're gonna watch it next week." He knew how to concede defeat by now when the teens' expressions reflected back that smug satisfaction.

"Is this another ticket to that Ultra Cinema?" Kagura suddenly chimed as her eyes sparkled, gaze fixed on the prize in his hand. "The one with those reclining massage chairs and unlimited popcorn and drinks? Where did you even get the money for this?" Her eyes narrowed as she seemed to regard him suspiciously, like that time he'd forgotten to buy her sukonbu before losing all their money to pachinko.

They _did_ look a little different than the usual but it was just part of the promotion.

"No, it's not. Those tickets were not worth the price." He waved off as he pulled out the tickets. "We're all gonna watch that movie with the gorilla and Sofa-kun." He informed them as he sat on the stool by the counter.

Though, he watched as realization seemed to wash over their faces.

"Don't tell us that it was Hijikata-san who actually _asked_." Shinpachi said in his most disappointed voice.

"Oi! It's not my fault that he already has them when I tried to ask him!" He hid his treasures before either could think to try wrestling it out of his hands. "Besides, you're the one who told me that he'd like this movie. So, why are you really surprised?" His eye twitched, feeling a bubble of irritation.

He yelped when someone whacked him behind the head.

"It means that you should move your ass and do _something._ " Otose's mild voice reached him and she only blew out smoke in response to his offended glare.

"Yeah, the old hag's right!" Kagura agreed as she took the seat next to him and slammed a fist on the counter. "You're letting Toshi do all the work here, Gin-chan! I know that you can be slow sometimes but mother raised you better than this, yes? Haven't you learned anything from Kazuki? He became too comfortable with hand-holding privileges so the mistress discarded him the next month like Catherine's dirty undies, yes?"

"Who would be stupid enough to stop at hand-holding privileges?" Gintoki demanded indignantly.

"That's your issue?!" Shinpachi snapped.

Besides, that drama had finally ended. Thank God for small mercies.

At the same time, Catherine had materialized beside Otose.

"Whose undies are you calling dirty, you ugly punk?" The cat Amanto spat out as she scowled. "I'll have you know that I have the cleanest and shiniest pair out of all the women here in Edo!"

"But Tama told me that she caught you disposing one because you didn't want to clean off your shit—" Kagura was quick to retaliate, a scornful and disgusted set to her lips.

"That's too much details Kagura-chan!" Shinpachi screamed while Gintoki chugged down his glass of alcohol and pretended that he wasn't hearing anything.

Though, it wasn't long before the mention of her name summoned the robot maid into the bar as well. Since it was afternoon, there weren't that many customers yet and the Yorozuya all but had the shop to themselves for the time being. Gintoki didn't know why they were even having a gathering about his relationship but he'd rather that he was here and involved than know that they went behind his back and have it blow up in his face spectacularly.

It had been a month since they had that talk. While things had been a bit rocky at the start, they were making it work. Surprisingly enough.

That was more than he could ask for.

Though, he still couldn't decide if the others' meddling ways were a blessing or a curse.

Tama readily approached him, broom in hand.

"If you need any assistance, Gintoki-sama, I have some helpful tips about achieving successful dates in my database," The green haired robot offered him with a small smile. "I'm certain that I can compile a list that would be suitable to the needs of Hijikata Toshirou-sama." She kindly offered as if it was an everyday thing to have a catalogue on how to date mayonnaise freaks and make them happy.

"I think there's no need—" He tried to politely decline.

"It's exactly what Gin-chan needs!" The Yato suddenly cut in, having dismissed a swearing Catherine in favor of shoving Gintoki aside to confront her. "This dumbass is too stupid to do it by himself, yes? So, give it to us instead!" She insisted with a determined grin.

Tama blinked and tilted her head.

"We would appreciate your help, Tama-san," Shinpachi was already there, bowing his head in gratitude.

"Oi, it's a group outing so stop it!" Gintoki interjected.

Kagura elbowed him none too gently.

"Just give them what they want," Otose gave her two cents as she took a long drag of her cigarette and it was obvious that she was definitely getting some kick out of this.

"Why are you even trying to—" He demanded.

He was cut off when another voice joined in.

"What's got you all so excited?"

"Toshi!" Kagura called out happily as she waved.

Gintoki turned and stared as the vice-commander entered the snack house. This guy really had fantastic timing. Though, it was Wednesday today, right? Maybe he should've opened up about the tickets once the man had gotten back to his patrol.

"Others gave you any trouble, Toshirou-kun?" He raised an eyebrow at him.

"Nah," Toshirou answered as he sat beside him. "Now, what's for lunch?"

**oOo**

Gintoki knew better than to take those dramas seriously. However, even if he didn't know what he'd been doing at the start, he had slowly been learning from his own experiences. Not like relationships came with a manual that they could just follow step-by-step or with a cheat sheet where he could crosscheck what they did right or wrong. But that was fine. Because he realized that he still continued to discover new things about them.

The first month hadn't been easy. While they hadn't been separated that long, they learned early on that some things had changed for each of them. And they needed to get used to that once again.

The second and third month had been pure bliss and they had reestablished their routine by then.

While the fourth and fifth month was actually pretty quiet.

Sometimes, they still had arguments over the smallest things and while it could escalate simply because of their moods, they now allotted time after to properly talk about it. That was the new rule and if one was being stubborn, the other got the privilege to literally knock some sense into them since they didn't want to make the same mistake as last time. Because of it, those explosive fights became far and few in between.

Gin-san was getting the hang of maintaining this smooth communication thing between them.

By the end of the sixth month, that was when another challenge came their way.

Granted, it was Gintoki's choice this time.

"Move in with me." He blurted out after the six-month mark.

"What?" The vice-commander blinked in surprise, hand in the middle of writing some paperwork that late afternoon freezing.

Gintoki, with nothing to do, had opted to just hang around the man until his shift ended since Shinpachi was busy helping out his sister for the day and Kagura had been spending the following days with her father since Umibouzu had visited three days ago. His head was currently pillowed on the other's lap while he spent his time reading his Jump. This way too, none of the officers would think to disturb them.

"Play house with me?" He tried again.

Toshirou carefully placed down his brush on the inkstone.

"I got you the first time, perm-head." The man told him but he still had that hint of bewilderment written on his face as he stared down at Gintoki. "I mean, _why_?"

"Why not?"

The vice-commander's eye twitched.

"Do you realize what you're asking me?" Toshirou bit out through gritted teeth.

"I do." Gintoki simply answered. "So, how about it?"

In the end, Toshirou had agreed to move in at the Yorozuya household.

Gintoki carefully didn't mention about the silver band hidden within the folds of his yukata. There would be time for that. He would make sure of it.

.

.

.

"Hey, Shouyou."

The man turned to him in askance, probably having heard the reluctance in his tone.

"Those old farts in the village really like you, you know?" Gintoki mentioned offhandedly as he leaned back on his hands beside his mentor by the _engawa_. "I mean, yeah, they were scared at first but I heard those old hags discussing about how you were good with kids and would like to try introducing their daughters or granddaughters to you." He scowled as he remembered what he'd overheard while he'd been buying dango at old Hazuki's shop.

"Is this what's been bothering you all morning?" Shouyou smiled at him, something almost teasing in his tone.

"Well, if you end up marrying someone, what's gonna happen to us?" He asked bluntly instead.

The man blinked at him, thoughtful.

"You still stay with me, of course." Shouyou readily answered. "At this point in time, I'm not looking for someone. Even if I am, they would have to be a person who would accept the people around me as well and that includes my students." Then he hummed. "Someday, you're also going to meet a person who would be like that for you. It's going to be hard but no matter how much you lose your way, you'll always find your way back to each other."

"Why did this conversation suddenly become about me?" Gintoki asked incredulously.

"It always pays off to consider your future." was the man's rather cheerful response.

He scoffed.

"Why would I want that?" He clicked his tongue in annoyance. "I already have you." A pause. "And I guess that also includes everyone here." He added with a grumble.

Something like pleased surprise crossed Shouyou's face before he reached out a hand to ruffle Gintoki's hair roughly.

"Ah, you're so cute." The man shamelessly told him. "But you'll understand when you're older." He laughed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that's it!
> 
> Thank you everyone who supported this little piece of mine. I appreciate all the kind words, encouragement, every subscription, kudos, bookmarks, comments, or messages you gave me until the end of this story :D
> 
> Also, here's a little [sketch](https://64.media.tumblr.com/66d072505548625564e18dd86c219881/6773d3f78500b653-9c/s500x750/974dc0fff435dce2a4d684d5c320481b5970c69e.jpg) dedicated to this fic. 
> 
> Listening to another Gintama ED for this chapter.  
>  _ **Hikari Shoumeiron** by ChiCO with HoneyWorks_


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